By Marylou Bride
It’s never safe to leave a child unattended in a vehicle. Even with the windows cracked or the vehicle parked in the shade, the car’s interior temperatures can reach dangerous levels in a short period of time.
And don’t be fooled by the thermometer: On days with mild temperatures, the heat inside a closed vehicle can reach dangerous levels within an hour, posing major health risks to small children or pets left inside, Consumer Reports states that even when it is 61 degrees outside, the temperature inside a closed car can reach more than 105 degrees in just one hour, which can be dangerous and even fatal to a child.
A car’s color cannot mitigate heat — that’s a myth, according to Consumer Reports.
“Children should never be left unattended in a car for even a short period of time,” said Jennifer Stockburger, director of operations at CR’s Auto Test Center. “Even when it’s not that hot outside, our test results show how quickly temperatures inside the car escalate, regardless of whether your car is light or dark.”
Research also shows that drivers shouldn’t rely on external shade to cool the cabin, either. Researchers at Arizona State University and the University of California at San Diego School of Medicine evaluated cabin air temperature and surface temperatures in identical vehicles placed in the shade and the sun. Their study estimates that even in a shaded vehicle, a 2-year-old child’s core temperature could reach a dangerous — and potentially deadly—104° F in a little less than two hours.
The danger from high temperatures is particularly acute for young children because their bodies heat up three to five times faster than adult bodies, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics. Young children, especially babies, lack the ability to efficiently regulate their body temperature. Children dehydrate more quickly than adults. Many automakers have integrated detection-and-alert technology into vehicles to remind parents or guardians that they might be leaving a child or pet behind.
About 39 children die each year from vehicular heatstroke, according to Kids and Car Safety and NoHeatstroke.org. Heatstroke is the leading cause of death in vehicles (excluding crashes) for those 14 and younger. There were 40 hot car deaths in 2024, according to Kids and Car Safety. In most cases, the children were unknowingly left behind in the vehicle.
Take precautions:
- Make sure your child is never left alone in a car.
- Place the child’s diaper bag or item in the front passenger seat as a visual cue that the child is with you. Or, keep a stuffed animal in the back seat. Anytime you buckle your child into the car, move that stuffed animal to the front with you as a visual cue that the child is with you.
- Make it a habit of opening the back door every time you park to ensure no one is left behind. To enforce this habit, place an item that you can’t start your day without in the back seat (employee badge, laptop, phone, handbag, etc.)
- Ask your child care provider to call you right away if your child hasn’t arrived as scheduled.
- Clearly announce and confirm who is getting each child out of the vehicle.
- Miscommunication can lead to thinking someone else removed the child.
Pets and cars
According to the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, never leave your dog — or any other animal — in a hot car. It’s like being baked alive. Heatstroke can happen in just minutes, even with the car’s windows partially rolled down. And opening a window slightly won’t help — parking in the shade or leaving water in the vehicle won’t prevent your dog from overheating, either.
In 2023 alone, PETA reported 163 heat-related deaths and 855 rescues.
If you see a dog in a hot car, call 911 immediately. While you’re waiting for the police to arrive, write down the car’s make, model and license plate number, or take a picture of the vehicle and go to the nearest building to find a manager and ask that the owner of the car be paged. If authorities are unresponsive or too slow to respond and the animal’s life appears to be in imminent danger, find a witness who will back up your assessment before carefully removing the animal from the car and carrying him or her into the shade. And remember, if all else fails, do what’s necessary to save the animal’s life. Make sure to have a witness.
