No safe time limit for leaving children in vehicles in hot weather

The Irish Times – Muiris Houston

“Because of physiological differences in body make-up and maturity, children are at high risk for heat-related illnesses. The number of children affected by heatstroke has increased in recent years – heatstroke related to sitting in vehicles is now a leading cause of death among children. An analysis of 171 child-vehicle heatstroke fatalities in the United States between 1995 and 2002 found that in 75 per cent of cases the child was unattended in a car. The study also revealed that just over half of the cases occurred in children who were unintentionally forgotten and left in the car by mistake. Of the instances where children were intentionally left in the vehicle, many were due to carers being unaware of how hot the vehicle would become.”(more)