Chicago Car Accident Lawyer Blog

The summer months are approaching fast and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) would like to remind parents and those who may be riding in a car with a child to keep in mind the dangers behind leaving children in a vehicle as children can experience hyperthermia in Illinois and elsewhere across the country.

The NHTSA conducted research in which results illustrated the increased risk of serious injury -- or even death -- for children who are left alone in vehicles. Hyperthermia, or heat-stroke, is the leading cause of non-accident car deaths for children who are under the age of 14. The unfortunate statistics reveal that nearly 30 documented deaths are a direct result from children left in vehicles each year.

Our Illinois personal injury lawyers understand that mistakes happen. Parents must exercise every preventable measure to avoid this serious and possibly deadly event from happening to their child. It is also important to speak with your daycare centers, caregivers and school employees about the very serious and possible event. You want to take every precaution possible to ensure that your child will not be left in a hot vehicle. Every year, babysitters and daycare centers are responsible for forgetting children left in vehicles and the results can be tragic.

The NHTSA provides the following tips to help parents protect their child from in-car hyperthermia during these summer months and year around:

-Teach your children that a vehicle is not a play area. Do not let them play in a vehicle unattended.

-Keep something noticeable in their car seat, like a bright, stuffed toy. Once you've buckled the child into the seat, put that object where you will notice it when you leave the vehicle.

-Ask that your child's daycare center notify you if your child doesn’t arrive on time.

-Always lock your car's doors and trunks. Keep keys out of children's reach. If your child is missing, be sure to check the vehicle first, and don't forget to look in the trunk.

- Never leave a child unattended in a vehicle, not even if the windows are open or if the engine is running and the air conditioner is on.

-Make a habit of looking in the vehicle before locking it and walking away. Be sure that you check both your front and back seats.

-Put your purse, briefcase or something that you’re sure to need in the rear seat so that you’ll be sure to see if a child is left in the vehicle.

-Write yourself a note and put it where you’ll see it when you leave the vehicle. This will serve as a constant reminder to check for children. It may sound silly, but it happens.

These steps may not prevent every case of a child left in a vehicle. When children are in distress because of heat, it is vital to get them out of the vehicle as quickly as possible. Warning signs of hyperthermia can include hot, red, moist skin, dry skin or no sweating. They can also experience a strong rapid pulse, a slow weak pulse, nausea or strange behavior. It is important you cool the child rapidly after being pulled from a hot vehicle.

According to the Department of Geosciences at San Francisco State University, nearly 50 children died because of hyperthermia after they were left in hot vehicles in the United States in 2010. Since 1998, nearly 500 children have died from heat-related issues after being left in hot vehicles. Since 1998, Illinois has experienced 13 child deaths from hyperthermia from children being left in a vehicle.

An examination of the statistics above found the following:

-More than 50 percent of these children were "forgotten" in a car by a caregiver.

-30 percent of the hyperthermia deaths occurred when a child was playing in an unattended vehicle.

-Nearly 20 percent of the children were left in the vehicle intentionally by an adult.

-Approximately 1 percent of deaths reported unknown circumstances.