KIDS AND CARS
In one minute, your life can change forever.
• On a hot day, the temperature inside a car may reach 120° F in 10 minutes.
• In a short time, children can get sick and dehydrated from the heat inside a closed car and may die.
• Someone may car-jack your car with your child in it.
• A child may climb out of a car seat and shift the car into gear.
• Loose objects can injure or kill the driver or passengers in the event of a sudden stop. If you are driving at 30 mph and come to a sudden stop, the cell phone that is beside you in the car would still be traveling at 30 mph. The phone weighs less than 1 lb. But when it hits you, the impact would be equal to that of two bricks.
• In a collision small objects become big missiles or "projectiles," making impacts of 20 to 30 times their weight. A 40 lb. object could impact the skull at a weight of 1/2 ton. Even the smallest objects can injure your child.
Be cautious:
• Never leave your child alone in a car; not even to pay for gas or to run in the store.
• Keep your car locked even when it is in your driveway or garage.
• Teach your kids not to play in—or around—a car.
• After you park, make sure all children have left the car. Make it a habit to always open the back door of your car when you get where you are going. "Look . . . then lock." When you return to your car; walk around the back of the car to the driver side door. Make sure no children are playing behind the car before you start it.
• If a child gets locked inside the car and it is hot, call 911.
• Beware of child-resistant door locks. Teach older kids how to disable the driver's door locks if they get locked inside the car.
• You are less likely to be hurt in a motor vehicle crash if you secure all loose objects in the glove compartment or trunk. Examples of common loose objects in the car are: cell phone, tissue box, water bottle, coffee cup, steering wheel lock, toys.
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