Heat kills children left in cars, 3 already this year Published May 28, 2009 By Joyce Atlee Family Advocacy Outreach Manager TINKER AIR FORCE BASE, Okla. -- What made a 21-year old Washington mother leave her baby boy in a car while she was at work for seven hours? The incident, which claimed the life of 1-year-old Joshua Michael Delacruz, is still under investigation. In April, Joshua joined the ranks of 418 young children in the U.S. who have died from hyperthermia due to environmental exposure since 1998. Controversy rages over the Internet as to whether this particular death was a tragic accident or deliberate child neglect. Did the mother forget her baby was in the backseat, did she leave him there on purpose that day because his daycare wouldn't accept a child with a fever or did a "helpful" family member place him in the backseat without her knowledge, because the mother was running late for work? Whatever the reason, the outcome was the same -- one dead baby strapped in his little car seat all day long in a hot car. And as summer approaches, newspaper headlines will echo Joshua's tragic story across the United States. Forty-two children died under similar circumstance in 2008. The 2009 death toll so far is up to 3 children, and the yearly average since 1998 is 38. The San Francisco State University Department of Geoscience's Web site -- http://ggweather.com/heat/ -- describes the deadly consequences of leaving a child in a parked vehicle. According to a 2002 study conducted by the Geosciences department, temperatures rise quickly to fatal levels in a vehicle, even if the windows are cracked. The temperature inside a parked vehicle increases by approximately 19 degrees in 10 minutes, 29 degrees in 20 minutes and up to 45-50 degrees in one to two hours. This means that when the outside temperature is 90 degrees, the temperature inside the vehicle will rise to 109 degrees in 10 minutes, 129 degrees in 20 minutes and at least 135 degrees after one or two hours. The study notes that most of this temperature increase is caused by objects inside the vehicle, such as the dashboard, steering wheel and child seat, giving off heat absorbed from the sun's shortwave radiation. The actual air temperature in the vehicle does not change much because it is relatively transparent and does not absorb the sun's shortwave radiation. This lack of variance in the air temperature explains why cracking the windows makes little difference in the vehicle's interior temperature. The lethal effect of the super-high temperatures is compounded by the fact that a child's thermoregulatory system is not as efficient as an adult's -- children's bodies warm at a rate three- to five-times faster than an adults'. The study goes on to say that heatstroke occurs when the body's core temperature reaches 104 degrees and that a core temperature of 107 degrees is considered fatal. True newspaper accounts of other hyperthermia victims like Joshua can be found online at www.4rkidssake.org/. Many of these cases involve parents and caregivers simply forgetting the child was in the backseat of the vehicle. Listed below are several safety tips to help prevent this deadly mistake. · Always "look and lock." Look in the backseat before you lock the car. It might help to leave a needed item -- such as a purse, a wallet or cell phone -- in the backseat. · Keep a large stuffed animal in the car seat. When you place the child in the seat, put the stuffed animal up front as a reminder. · Tie a ribbon to your steering wheel (making sure it is placed in a location that will not interfere with driving), key chain, car door handle or anywhere you will see it to serve as a reminder when exiting the car. · Arrange with the daycare provider or babysitter to call if the child doesn't arrive as scheduled. Leave all numbers where you can be reached. · Plan ahead to use drive-through services such as pharmacies and banks whenever possible. Unfortunately, some cases of hyperthermia involve parents or others who deliberately leave the child in a parked vehicle. Children must never be left alone inside a vehicle -- not even for "just a few minutes" to run into the base exchange or other facility. Such incidents on an Air Force base will result in a report being filed with the Department of Human Services and referral to Family Advocacy for suspected child neglect. Anyone seeing a young child unattended in a vehicle at Tinker should immediately call Security Forces at 734-3737 or 911. Since 1998, military installations have developed policies addressing these and related issues. The Tinker Youth Supervision guidelines specify that a child must be at least 10 years old to remain in a car unattended and the keys must be removed. Copies of the current guidelines are in the Balfour Beatty Communities resident guide, which can be found on their Web site at www.tinkerfamilyhousing.com/ Home.aspx.