2018 Was Deadliest Year for Hot Car Deaths: National Safety Council

[Stuart G]

https://www.nsc.org/in-the-newsroom/2018-was-deadliest-year-on-record-for-hot-car-deaths


NSC releases new interactive online training to help prevent another fatal year.

Itasca, IL – Tragically, more children died in hot cars in the United States in 2018 than any other year on record, the National Safety Council has confirmed. Fifty-one children died last year of pediatric vehicular heatstroke, topping the single-year high of 49 set in 2010.

In response, the Council is releasing a free online training, Children in Hot Cars, that provides vital information about pediatric vehicular heatstroke and outlines how distraction and other behaviors can lead to these unnecessary deaths. The Council is issuing the training during Distracted Driving Awareness Month, observed each April to educate about the various forms of distraction behind the wheel. Sadly, many drivers forget their children in the back seat because they are distracted, making hot car deaths one distracted driving consequence that often is overlooked.

“Last year, we set one of the saddest records in U.S. roadway safety history,” said Nick Smith, interim president and CEO of the Council. “We believe this new training will go a long way toward educating people about pediatric vehicular heatstroke and empowering them with tips so they can avoid behaviors that can lead to these tragic deaths.”

More Info on this subject:

https://www.noheatstroke.org/

[tblue37]

1. If your child is in the back seat, take off your left shoe and put it back there.

You might walk off and forget your purse or briefcase, but you won't forget that your left shoe is missing.

[Stuart G]

2. Excellent Idea, Thanks for posting this. Another thought. All these deaths could be prevented!

[MurrayDelph]

3. Unless you drive a stick shift

Then you need to find another mnemonic.

Never had kids, but I do have dogs, and frequently travel with them between Los Angeles and the northernmost Oregon coast.

When I stop in Bishop, if I can't get a shady spot at the store I'm shopping, I've been known to park a couple of blocks away at a park show I can park under a shade tree.

After one time when I desperately needed to make a pit stop and the rest area didn't have any shady spots (so I had to have a picnicking family hold my dog's lead while I went to the bathroom), I made a point of travelling with a list of all the PetCo, PetSmart, and Pet Supplies Plus stores along the way, so I could bring her into the restroom with me.

[Stuart G]

4. ....Well...you used a term lots of people do not know, "stick shift"

Of course that is hard to believe, but I suspect it is true. I could be wrong, but then again I could be correct. We would have to take a poll and find out. Across the entire country, not at DU. Let's get various kinds of people of all ages from all walks of life and from every state in the U.S.A. I wonder how many young people know what that term means? I wonder how many middle aged people know what that means??? Any guesses?

[csziggy]

5. There are relatively inexpensive car alarms that can be added

This article lists ieight of them:
8 Life-Saving Car Seat Alarms That Remind Parents There’s a Baby in the Back Seat
https://www.fatherly.com/gear/best-car-seat-alarms/

Nissan now provides a car alarm for this purpose:

Nissan's rear-seat alert meant to help deter child heat-related deaths
By Doug Phillips | South Florida Sun Sentinel |
Aug 01, 2018 | 5:25 AM

Nissan is making its Rear Door Alert technology standard on all of the company’s 4-door vehicles beginning with the 2019 model year to help reduce heatstroke incidents, the manufacturer announced Tuesday.

The technology was introduced as standard equipment for the Pathfinder SUV for 2018 and is now being expanded to another eight models, including the popular Rogue and Altima designs.

Here’s how the Rear Door Alert works: The vehicle’s operating system notes when a back door is opened at the beginning of a trip. If so, the horn will honk at the end of the trip to remind the driver to check the back seat. The feature can be turned on or off using the vehicle’s on-board computer menu.

In 2017 there were 43 deaths across the U.S. of children from heatstroke inside vehicles, according to the the group KidsandCars.org. So far in 2018 there have been 29, including a 17-month-old boy’s July death in Pembroke Pines and the February death of a 1-year-old boy in Miami.
More: https://www.sun-sentinel.com/business/fl-bz-nissan-rear-seat-alert-20180801-story.html

All car companies could do that, though as noted in the first article, an effort to pass a requirement failed in the US Congress.