‘There is no safe amount of time,’ to leave a child inside a hot car, expert says

In the wake of a Bradenton woman being arrested after she allegedly left her two children inside a hot car on July 29, experts across the country say there is no excuse and no exceptions for such behavior.

According to healthychildren.org, heat stroke is the No. 1 cause of death in vehicles when there isn’t a crash for children under the age of 15 in the U.S.

More than 600 children have died in the U.S. as a result of a child being left alone in a hot vehicle since 1990 and incidents appear to be on the rise.

Under Florida law, children under the age of 6 may not be left alone in a vehicle for more than 15 minutes or at all if the engine is left running, the health of the child is in danger or the child appears to be in distress. A parent or other person responsible for the child who breaks the law can be charged with a second-degree misdemeanor, which carries a fine of between $50 and $500.

If the child is injured, the charge could be increased to a third-degree felony.

A law that went into effect in 2016 provides civilians with immunity from civil liability for damage to a motor vehicle if they they rescue a person or domestic animal. The good Samaritan has to follow certain conditions in the law to avoid liability.

Even at 72 degrees, temperatures inside a vehicle can rise by as much as 30 degrees within 10 minutes. For a Florida summer day when temperatures rise well into the 90s, temperatures can reach in excess of 120 degrees.

Heat stroke begins when the body temperature reaches 104 degrees, at which time organs will begin to fail.

Death occurs at 107 degrees, if not sooner. A child’s body temperature rises three to five times faster than an adult’s.

Rolling down windows will not help as temperatures will still rise well above the danger level.

“It is never OK to leave kids or pets in a car — even with the windows down,” Christopher McStay, an ER doctor and assistant professor of emergency medicine at New York University, tells webmd.com. “It is an absolute no-no.”

Some parents may not want to take their child in and out of a cumbersome car seat for what they believe will be a quick stop, but McStay said the stakes are too high.

“There is no safe amount of time to leave children alone in the car,” he said.

Heat stroke is the most serious form of heat-related injuries and can kill, cause brain damage or cause complications with the central nervous system.

Symptoms include:

• Throbbing headache.
• Dizziness.
• Lack of sweating despite the heat.
• Muscle weakness or cramps.
• Nausea and vomiting.
• Rapid heartbeat.
• Rapid, shallow breathing.
• Confusion.
• Seizures.
• Unconsciousness.

The Bradenton Herald reached out to the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office and Bradenton Police Department, who did not immediately return a request for comment late Tuesday.

However, according to wehavekids.com, some simple steps to follow in case you come across unattended children in a car include:

• Select the door or window furthest from the child.
• Use a hard object (tire iron, can of food, whatever is available) to break the window.
• Choose a point in the window just above the door lock in case all you can do is make a hole in the window.
• It will be harder to break than you think, but keep trying.
• Wrap your sleeve or other cloth item around your hand and push into the hole you’ve created and unlock the door.
• Get the child immediately to a shaded area or inside an air conditioned building.
• Call 911 first if you see the child or children still responsive, but act immediately if you believe it is a life or death situation.