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Deaths of Children Left in Hot Cars Hit Grim Record
Filed under: In The News, Research Reveals: Toddlers & Preschoolers
Credit: AJ Mast, AP Images
We wonder, how could they forget something like that?
But, it happens. The Detroit Free Press reports that 49 children in the United States died of heatstroke last year after being left in hot cars. That's a new -- if grim -- record.
Child-welfare advocates tell the Free Press that some of those deaths are the result of parents forgetting that they have a baby in a rear-facing safety seat -- not that rear-facing safety seats are a bad idea, they say. It's just that they require parents to be more aware.
More than half of the parents of the some 500 children who have died in hot cars between 1998 and 2010 admit later that they forgot their children were there, according to the Free Press. Five children have died so far this year, the paper reports, including three in May in southern states.
"They think of the people this happened to as monsters, and they don't put in place the safeguards you should," Janette Fennell of Kids and Cars tells the Free Press. "If you have the ability to forget your cell phone, you can forget your child."
Kids and Cars, a Kansas-based nonprofit organization has become a national leader in child car safety. The group is printing "Look Before You Lock" warning tags that will go into take-home kits that hospitals give new mothers.
In addition, Safe Kids USA just launched a "Never Leave Your Child Alone in a Car" campaign.
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ReaderComments (Page 1 of 2)
6-09-2011 @ 3:16PM
Olivia said...What a horribly sad statistic. It's hard for me to wrap my head around how parents can forget they have a baby in the car. Of course, they all probably thought the same thing.
The sticker on a window is good, but with remote locks it still may not make a difference in some cases. I would like to see childcare providers call parents if the child doesn't show up. That might save some children's lives.
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6-09-2011 @ 2:12PM
Cindy said...My son choked on his own spit up while I drove b/c I couldn't see him. We lost him.
The safety benefits to rear-facing car seats can't be contested but it is imperative that a safety mirror be installed so the parent can see their child at all times.
Rear facing babies are still so little...too small to tell us when something's wrong. Save yourself the pain, properly install a safety mirror and keep your child safe.
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6-09-2011 @ 2:47PM
Bridget said...Cindy, I am so sorry for your tragic loss. I have a 2 month old and just the other day she choked on her spit up and was turning purple. I had to force an aspirator in her throat and suck the stuff up. It is terrifying, and if I hadnt been watching her I wouldnt have known anything was wrong. You are completely correct that safety mirrors are imperative.
6-09-2011 @ 7:50PM
saannie said...bless your heart, so sorry for your loss, hope you have found some comfort since this unfortunate incident. You and your family will be in my thoughts and prayers.
6-09-2011 @ 10:34PM
Lisa said...First of all, I am sooo sorry for your loss. I cannot imagine your pain but I can pray for God's comfort for you. I agree with your idea about the mirror thing but my only concern is for yet another device that will take the driver's eyes off the road. It's a difficult dilemma.
6-09-2011 @ 2:14PM
teresa said...if less parents were always on their damn cell phones and smart phones, maybe they'd be more aware of their kids/babies and not forget them in the baking car. I"m still amazed at how many people drive while calling, while texting and therefore drive unsafely and with kids in the car no less. nothing is as important as the safety of your kids, hang up, pay attention and be present with children - they need that. kids dying in a hot car is a horrific tragedy that can be prevented.
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6-09-2011 @ 2:33PM
Me said...I was always afraid I would leave one of my children in the car. I got into the habit of putting something I needed in the back seat so I would have to open the back door before I locked the car. Easy to see into the car seat that way. Kids are all grown and gone, but I still put my purse or jacket in the back seat before I leave. Sometimes it's the little things we do that can help us with the big things - like remembering who else is in our car.
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6-09-2011 @ 7:49PM
saannie said...very good and smart idea. I hope more parents will think of this and spare them the burden off one of their precious children dying and having to deal with the quilt and grief as a result from a horrible tragedy.
6-09-2011 @ 7:08PM
Susan said...My husband and I have an agreement to call each other after we have driven somewhere with our son. It started because when my husband first started taking my son to daycare, I was paranoid they would have an accident or something, so I made my husband call me when he arrived at work to let me know that he got my son safetly to daycare, and he was safetly at work. But as I got over my fear of them having an accident, we still continued a tradition as kind of an accountability to each other to make sure we didnt forget our son was in the rear facing car seat, and I in turn call my husband if I am driving our son somewhere too keep myself accountable for our sons whereabouts.
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6-09-2011 @ 4:07PM
sheila said...I feel rear facing seats are unsafe even if installed properly. One reason being if parents are driving in sunny/hot weather, the sun beating down thru glass is twice as hot, thus children tend to get heat exhaustion quicker, you can't reach around( usually can be done without taking eyes off the road) to give the child a cup or bottle, and if the child looks asleep in the rear mirror, a parent could midread the signs that something else is wrong. I had 3 kids, all faced forward, never forgot them and they were fed and hydrated at all times in the vehicles. The truth carseat manufactors need to sell more seats, so now they tell us kids need to be in them til there tweens......with air bags surround the inside of most vehicles today.... its all about.........money,money,money...
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6-09-2011 @ 6:06PM
Jenny said...Studies show that when a car crashes; an infant in a rear facing car seat is safer from injury in that position than front facing. All infant carriers have sunshades that can be flipped around & there all kinds of sunshade products (wether you have an infant carrier or not) to protect your baby while in your vehicle. Not to mention if you place any type of seat in the center it will be out of the sun the majority of the time & that is the safest position if ever in a crash.
6-09-2011 @ 6:14PM
Jenny said...But, the article says the problem is parents forgetting about their children because they are "out-of-sight/out-of-mind". I honestly could never imagine coming even close to forgetting my children being in the vehicle, but I have known some people that might have that capability. I think placing your purse or something important in the back seat would be a good way for making sure that never happens.
6-14-2011 @ 5:40PM
Jennifer said...Sheila - I wonder... as a newborn, small infant, or even as a toddler, were you ever in a crash? The bones that protect the spinal cord do not fuse until they are between the ages of 4 and 6. I disagree that car seat makers are only out for the money.
Every year, the makers of the seats come out with new, more affordable options that go both rear facing and forward facing.
There is a seat on the market that is viable for average newborns, rear-facing through age 2 (maybe longer) and can fit until the child is ready for a booster seat. My son fit in it until age 7. That seat is only $150. Prorate that over the 6 year life-span of the seat and that equals a paltry $25 a year. Or just under seven cents a day. Call me silly, but that doesn't sound expensive at all.
I think it is less about the car seat makers wanting to make more an more money and more about a parent's willingness to really look at facts when it comes to keeping their children 5 times safer in the car by keeping them rear facing for as long as possible.
6-09-2011 @ 4:02PM
Kris said...Sorry, but I am a mother of six and I have NEVER forgotten one of my children is with me.
WHAT are parents doing with their lives that they can forget they have a child with them under their care? I don't get that at all.
If your daily life is that distracting and chaotic that something like this could happen, then something needs to change!
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6-09-2011 @ 7:45PM
Sumer said...I totally agree with you! I have 3 daughters', 13 yrs. old, 8 yrs. old, and 10 months old, and I have never forgot about any of them!! Even when they are not with me, I still constantly think of them. I'm their mother, how could I not think of them at all times. They are MY responsibility. Of course, I don't believe babies die of SIDS either. I think it's careless parenting. Same for drop side cribs. I wonder how many of the parents that "forgot" their baby's in the car did it on purpose, knowing they could use that as an excuse and not do jail time....
6-09-2011 @ 4:34PM
Olga Gonzales said...My son was in a car seat before the mandatory rear-facing rear seat. I was never comfortable with having him out of my sight, so when he was very young I had him rear facing in the FRONT seat--safe from the sun, and, in my opinion, in no more danger than being in the back seat.
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6-26-2011 @ 1:43AM
Kayla said...The front seat is only safe to use if the airbag is turned off. Even then, the back seat is preferable.
6-09-2011 @ 4:33PM
Debi said...I don't care who you are, how does someone forget thier child. I'm sorry, I just can't imagine that. A cell phone is not the same as a baby. I forget my cell phone all the time but to forget my child, not going to happen. I'd have to say if you forget your child then your priorities are so screwed up you need help. So now we want to blame it on rear facing car seats, pleeeeeease give me a break.
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6-09-2011 @ 6:25PM
Hogs said...I agree, how cn you forget a child in the back seat. I have two young nieces and they are buckled up in the back seat, I have yet to forget them
6-09-2011 @ 5:00PM
mwood said...just drive safley and it wont be a problem
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