New Jersey Injury Lawyers BlogAvoid Summer Tragedy – Don’t Leave Children (or Pets) Unattended in Cars
The official start of summer is still a few days away and already there have been four child fatalities related to hot cars in this county this year, according to the National Safety Council. A recent nj.com article on the arrest of a Paterson, NJ mother on child endangerment charges after leaving her two children unattended in her car while she shopped at a local store brought to mind the need for reminders on the dangers of this activity. According to the article, the outside temperature at the time was 85 degrees, while the temperature in the car climbed to 140 degrees by the time firefighters rescued the children.
According to kars4kids.org, in the summer it can take only 15 minutes for temperatures in an automobile to climb to 109 degrees; a child’s internal organs begin to shut down when temperatures reach 104 degrees – evidence that even a short errand can result in devastating injury. For some tips to help ensure this doesn’t happen to someone you love, read “Preventing Hot Car Deaths: 6 Facts & Tips for Parents.”