Little Helpers Can Prevent Hot Car Tragedies
MAKE A HABIT –
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Never leave a child alone in a car – not even for a second.
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When exiting your car, always open the back door as a habit. This is the precaution I take. No matter what the weather or how much I have to carry, I always open the back door. It’s a habit I’m proud to have.
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Keep talking to the child in the back seat, even if she is sleeping and you have to talk very quietly. You’ll remember you’re talking to someone.Get yourself into a “look before you lock” habit.
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Schedule a phone call to ensure that your child arrives to his destination on time.
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Teach your child that cars are not play areas and make sure they don’t have access to car keys.
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Leave your left shoe in the back seat.
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Leave your laptop or cell phone in the back seat (you shouldn’t be on your cell phone when you’re driving anyway). Leave your purse in the back seat.
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Don’t leave your car until you get home – use drive thru businesses.
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Pay at the pump when you pump gas.
It’s only the end of June, but every time I get in my car, the first thing I do is turn on the air conditioner and open the windows while the air conditioner gets working. This is a follow up to a post I wrote a couple years ago. https://grammyslittlehelpers.com/2020/07/27/a-safe-summer-is-a-happy-summer/
While I’m sitting in my hot car waiting for it to cool off, my heart is breaking knowing that somewhere there is a child or pet literally dying because they were left in a hot car. In the previous post, I listed these little helpers at the end of the post. This time I listed them first!
According to Kids and Cars . org, both children and dogs are more susceptible to heatstroke due to their inability to regulate their body temperature. A child’s body temperature rises 3-5 times faster than an adult and dogs are unable to sweat causing their body temperature to rise quickly to deadly levels. This combined with the fact that a vehicle acts like a greenhouse which creates a deadly environment for children and pets in cars in a matter of minutes.
Kids and Cars.org is partnering up with PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) to help saves the lives of both children and pets. In addition to my previous post, Kids and Cars.org has tons of information and little helpers to help us keep our kids and pets safe. There is even a “rescue tool” that will break a side car window if someone is trapped inside. Please click on the link below and let’s make it a SAFE, not heartbreaking summer!
Thanks for reading. Have a grand day and grand summer!