Keeping your kids safe in the heat

The hot temperatures are starting to rise and it’s important to keep your children safe from the heat. News 25’s Taylor Rubach explains the dangers of locking your kids in a hot car unattended.
You could be running into the store for just a few minutes, but those minutes could be the last of your child’s life. As the temperatures begin to rise, law enforcement is urging families to never leave children inside a locked car unattended. Sgt. Joshua Bromen with Gulfport PD said, “On average in the U.S., there’s 37 deaths a year of children in vehicles, about one every nine days. It’s obviously something that takes place and it’s an issue. People really need to make sure to slow down and make sure they check their vehicle and it’s not worth that one or two seconds here or there.”
One safe way to remind yourself is the ‘look before you lock’ technique. Get in the habit of always opening the back door to check the back seat before leaving your vehicle and make sure no child is left behind.
James Carver with American Medical Response is all too familiar with hot car deaths and says this tragedy happens every year. “Going into a restaurant or something like that, you know, fast food, go through the drive-thru instead. There should never be any reason to leave your kid in a car. Just running a quick errand inside, take them inside with you, don’t leave them in a car unattended for any length of time at all.”
But if you do happen to see a child or a pet unattended in a hot, locked car, the first thing to do is call 911. “Get everybody in route, ambulance, fire department, police department, get them in route. Seek permission if you can to break that window, try to get that kid out of that hot environment,” said Carver.