Weather Wednesday; Hot Car Safety. Leaving your child unattended in a car can be fatal!

It’s an unfortunate story that occurs every summer. A parent leaves their child in the car unattended with the engine off and the windows rolled up. On average, 37 children die in hot cars each year in the United States. When a parent or caregiver leaves a baby or young child in a car the end result can be injury or even death.  I wanted to be able to deliver a message that may save a child’s life. This week Rowan County Weather, The Salisbury Post, and the Salisbury Fire Department conducted a test just to see how hot the internal temperature of a vehicle gets on a summer day.

The plan was simple. We placed a thermometer outside in the shade to get the actual air temperature. We also placed a thermometer inside of a vehicle to get the internal temperature in the cabin of the vehicle. The weather conditions throughout the test were overcast skies with a constant 81º temperature. The results inside of the vehicle were changing dramatically. Within the first ten minutes the inside of the vehicle has warmed up to 95º. Lieutenant Brantley Shanks of the Salisbury Fire Department stated, “The internal temperature of the car can heat up to 80% of its maximum temperature within 20 minutes.”

After the 20 minute mark, the interior of the vehicle had warmed up to 98º.  When asked about what a deadly temperature inside of a vehicle would be Lieutenant Shanks stated, “A core temperature of 105º would be a temperature that could be fatal.” According to livescience.com it's difficult to predict when heatstroke will strike, largely because the condition involves many factors.  These include a person's age, weight, and existing health conditions, the researchers said. However, most cases happen when a child's core body temperature rises above 104 degrees F (40 degrees C) for an extended period of time.

As we concluded our test after 40 minutes the vehicle’s internal temperature had maxed out at 98º. Now don’t let that give you a safe feeling. Had the sun briefly popped out during our test, the internal temperature of the vehicle would have certainly crossed over the 105º deadly temperature. Per the National Weather Service a vehicle parked in direct sunlight will reach an estimated 123º within 60 minutes internally.

There are various phone apps available for download such as the Navigation App, “Waze” you can install on your phone. Waze has a reminder once you reach your destination reminding you to get your child out of the car. There are other apps you can download as well such as, “Precious Cargo” or even “Kars4Kids.” The reminders these apps can offer are invaluable. In closing, I want to thank the Salisbury Fire Department, Chief Jay Baker and Lieutenant Shanks for assisting in this test that may provide information to save a child’s life!