With summer here and plenty of hot days to come, it’s especially important to never leave your kids in the car. On a warm day, the temperature inside a parked car can be 20C to 30C hotter than outside. Leaving your child in the car puts them at high risk of a heat-related illness.
The Victorian Government recently launched its Never Leave Kids in Cars heat awareness campaign, which prompts parents to take their child with them whenever they get out of the car, just as they would take their everyday valuables.
The risk of heatstroke and dehydration is very real:
- A child’s body temperature rises three to five times faster than an adults
- Even on a mild day, the temperature inside a parked car can be 20 to 30 degrees hotter than the temperature outside
- When it’s 30 degrees outside, a child could be suffering in up to 60-degree heat
- Leaving the windows down has little effect on the inside temperature of the car
- Large cars heat up as quickly as smaller cars
For more information on the Never Leave Kids in Cars campaign, visit kidsafevic.com.au.