When placed in a locked car Tuesday for a short amount of time, this thermometer registered more than 130 degrees. With temperatures around 80 degrees outside, a vehicle’s inside temperature can jump at least 19 degrees in 10 minutes, with the heat in the car continuing to rise, posing a danger to children and pets left inside.
With high temperatures averaging around 91 degrees in June and 88 degrees so far in July, the heat expected to reach almost 100 degrees today could be even more dangerous, especially inside vehicles.
With an 80-degree outside temperature, a vehicle's inside temperature can jump 19 degrees in 10 minutes, and the heat in the car will continue to rise, much like in an oven.
A California university's nationwide count of hyperthermia deaths of children left in vehicles puts this year's total at 20 through June 27, including the April 23 death of 21-month-old Joseph Chatmon in Forsyth, Ga.
"As the temperatures rise, we are now seeing almost daily reports from the media around the country of kids being rescued after being left in cars," said Dr. Patrick O'Neal, director of Georgia Department of Community Health's Division of Emergency Preparedness and Response, in a June press release. "This shows that these deaths are preventable. Extra planning by the driver and quick action by concerned bystanders can make the difference for these kids."
A child's body temperature rises three to five times faster than an adult's, putting kids at greater risk for heat stroke, a life-threatening emergency that can cause permanent brain damage or even death, especially in children.
That is why local firefighters say if they find a child who has been locked in a hot car, rescue crews will take immediate action.
"If we do get a call about a child locked in a vehicle and that car is not running, at this time of year, we got in our mind, when we get there, just break the window," Cartersville Fire Marshall Mark Hathaway said. "We're not going to fool around trying to unlock a car when it's 98 degrees out and its windows are rolled up and a child inside.
"If the windows are cracked, it helps some but not much. We all leave our windows cracked this time of year to try to keep the heat out. It helps a little, but we use common sense. If there's a child in distress, we're not going to hesitate."
Cracking the windows to allow a pet to stay in the car, where temperatures can reach 120 degrees in a matter of minutes, also could mean trouble for four-legged friends.
The Humane Society of the United States warns motorists to never lock pets, who can't perspire and only dispel heat by panting and through the pads of their feet, in a car. Dogs and cats left inside briefly also can suffer from heat exhaustion, heat stroke, brain damage and death.
There are not only dangers in leaving children in pets inside hot cars, as certain common household yet heat-sensitive items become projectiles in high temperatures.
Prevent heat-related deaths of children in cars: About 37 children nationwide die from heat stroke each year after being left alone in hot cars, according to Georgia Department of Community Health's website. In more than 50 percent of cases, an adult forgot to take the child out of the car when he or she left the vehicle.