Story by Eline Wiggins. Video by Tom Riehm. Photos by Reilly Ternan.

Every year, children in Texas are prone to vehicular heatstroke. So far this year, eight children have died of vehicular heatstroke across the US, including a 4-year-old boy in Houston, according to noheatstroke.org. In 2022, three children died of vehicular heatstroke in Texas.

On Monday, Cook Children's and Prosper Fire Department teamed up to remind parents about the dangers of hot cars. First responders showed a live demonstration at Cook Children’s Medical Center – Prosper to simulate a 911 call and emergency response for a child left in a hot car. Speakers included Prosper Fire Chief Stuart Blasingame, Viviana Esparza from Cook Children’s Center for Community Health, Meena Guirguis, M.D,, emergency department physician at Cook Children's Medical Center - Prosper and  Larry Lanar Dyer of El Dorado Chevrolet.

A digital thermometer displayed the internal temperature of a second demonstration vehicle to show how high and how quickly a vehicle can heat up. The temperature inside the vehicle surged passed 135 degrees. 

Young children are particularly at risk for heatstroke, or hyperthermia, because their bodies heat up three to five times faster than an adult’s. Because cars heat up so quickly, a tragedy could happen faster than you think.

“Heatstroke in children can happen in minutes, not hours,” said Meena Guirguis, M.D., emergency department physician with Cook Children's Medical Center - Prosper. “If you see a child left in a vehicle, call 911 immediately.” 

A car can heat up 19 degrees in just 10 minutes. And cracking a window doesn’t help. It’s never OK to leave a child alone in a car, even for a few minutes and even if the car is running.

“Parents suffer from exhaustion due to lack of sleep, stress and changes in their normal routing. Any one of these can cause your memory to fail at a time when you least expect it,” according to kidsandcars.org. “Even the best of parents or caregivers can unknowingly leave a sleeping baby in a car; and the end result can be injury or even death.”

Create reminders by placing something in the back of your car next to your child, such as one of your shoes, a purse or a cell phone, is especially important on days when you're not following a normal routine.

To reduce the number of child vehicular heatstroke deaths, parents should remember to ACT:

• Avoid heatstroke-related injury by never leaving a child alone in a car, not even for a minute. Always lock your doors and trunks— including in your driveway or garage. If a child goes missing, check the pool first, and then check the vehicles, including trunks.
• Create reminders. Routinely place something you'll need at your next stop—like a purse, briefcase or cellphone—in the backseat.
• Take Action. If you see a child alone in a car, take action. Call 911.

What to do if you see a child or pet alone in a vehicle from kidsandcars.org:

• Don’t wait for the driver to return. Call 911 right away. The 911 operator can help give you instructions on how to care for the child or pet.
• If the child or pet is not responsive or is in distress, immediately:
  • Get them out of the car by any means necessary
  • Move the them to a cooler environment (somewhere with AC or shade if AC is not available)
  • Remove child’s clothing to let the heat dissipate from their skin
  • Dampen them with cool water or wet rags, immerse in cool water (not in an ice bath) 
• If the child or pet is responsive and not in distress:
  • Stay with them until help arrives
  • Ask someone else if they can locate the driver. You might suggest they ask security of a store manager to page them

Warning Signs of Heatstroke:

• Hot, flush or red
• Slow, weak pulse or strong, rapid pulse
• Lethargy, confusion or strange behavior
• Nausea
• No sweating

The first death occurred in Providence Village on Thursday, June 24, 2019. CBS11 reports the 4-year-old boy was found outside a home just before 5 p.m. when temperatures were in the mid-90s.

The second tragedy occurred on Sunday, June 23, when an 18-month-old was left inside a car for five hours outside of a restaurant in Galveston. 

The deaths were the first two of the year in Texas and the thirteenth pediatric vehicular heatstroke deaths nationwide.

The peaking 100 degree temperatures are dangerous, especially for children, whose body temperatures rise three to five times faster than adults. There have already been 11 pediatric hyperthermia (heat stroke) deaths this year in the United States from children being left alone in cars.

Although there have not yet been any recorded in Texas, this state typically leads in hot car related deaths. Since 2010 there have been 60 juvenile deaths in Texas from children being left alone in a hot car.

Most cases of child heat stroke deaths in cars are accidental. There was a change in mom or dad’s routine, and the child was unintentionally left in the back seat. Like drowning, it is quick and it can happen to anyone.

“We do get a very small amount of people who leave the child in the car intentionally, but the majority is when you just totally forget,” Cook Children’s Injury Prevention Coordinator Sharon Evans said. “There is no socio-economic, no educational or cultural factors. It can be anyone.”

Evans and her team have partnered with Safe Kids Worldwide to develop a Texas Hyperthermia Board to educate Texans about how and why this can be preventable. The task force has changed legislation in 2016 to require birthing hospitals to educate new parents about hyperthermia and car seat checks.

“The biggest problem with injury prevention is everyone thinks it won’t happen to them,” Evans said. “We hear lots of people saying, ‘Oh, that’s just a horrible parent. How could they forget?’ Today’s world is so technologically driven, and people give more time than ever to their cellphones. If you can forget your phone somewhere, you can forget your child in the backseat.”

Outdoor temperatures don’t have to be sweltering for heat stroke to occur. The first vehicle-related heat stroke death this year occurred in April with 79 degree weather. The temperature in a car can rise nearly 19 degrees in ten minutes. Heat stroke can occur when a body temperature rises above 104 degrees and body organs begin to shut down near 107 degrees.

There have been many instances where people walk through the grocery store parking lot, see a child alone in the car and do not act for fear of prosecution if they damage the car. Texas released Texas House Bill 478 (HB 478) in 2017 to protect Good Samaritans and potentially save children from heat stroke.

HB 478 allows citizens to rescue a vulnerable child under the age of seven if there is no reasonable method for the child to exit the vehicle without assistance and if the Good Samaritan has reasonable belief that entry into the car is necessary to avoid imminent harm to the child. HB 478 also requires law enforcement must be notified and the citizen must not use more force than necessary to enter the vehicle.

Child car-related heat strokes are preventable, but can happen to anyone. It’s important to take measures in educating adults and children about the dangers of a closed car door. The effects could ultimately last a lifetime.

“It doesn’t matter how good of a parent you are. It’s just a tragic accident,” Evans said. “Being vigilant could save a life.”

This was the first pediatric vehicular heatstroke death in Texas in 2018 and the sixth incident in the United States this year.

Police say the child was left for multiple hours inside a hot car in a high school parking lot where temperatures reached 100 degrees. The father was reported to work at the school as a teacher. Police says investigators believe the baby's death was accidental.

A child dies from heatstroke about once every 10 days from being unattended in a hot vehicle. Heatstroke is the leading cause of non-crash vehicle fatality for kids 14 and younger. In more than half of these deaths, the caregiver forgot the child was in the car or the child climbed into an unlocked car to play and couldn't get themselves out.

“What’s heartbreaking is that this is a serious public health issue that is 100 percent preventable,” said Dana Walraven, Community Health Outreach manager at Cook Children’s and Safe Kids Tarrant County Coordinator. “Every mom and dad out there must realize it can happen to you. Texas leads the nation in child heat-related car deaths.”

Heatstroke, or hyperthermia, occurs when the body isn’t able to cool itself quickly enough and the body temperature rises to dangerous levels.

Young children are particularly at risk as their bodies heat up three to five times faster than an adult’s. When a child’s internal temperature gets to 104 degrees, major organs begin to shut down. And when that child’s temperature reaches 107 degrees, the child can die.

Because of this, and because cars heat up so quickly – 19 degrees in 10 minutes – tragedies can happen faster than you think. Symptoms can quickly progress from flushed, dry skin and vomiting to seizures, organ failure and death.

“Heat is much more dangerous to children than it is to adults,” Walraven said. “When left in a hot vehicle, a young child’s core body temperature may increase 3 to 5 times faster than that of an adult. This could cause permanent injury or death.”

Safe Kids recommend the “ACT” method to prevent tragedy to your child or to a child you see left in a car:

• A: Avoid heatstroke-related injury and death by never leaving your child alone in a car, not even for a minute. And make sure to keep your car locked when you’re not in it so kids don’t get in on their own.
• C: Create reminders by putting something in the back of your car next to your child such as a briefcase, a purse or a cell phone that is needed at your final destination. Another idea is to take off one of your shoes and place it in the backseat. This is especially important if you’re not following your normal routine.
• T: Take action. If you see a child alone in a car, call 911. Emergency personnel want you to call. They are trained to respond to these situations. One call could save a life.

Click to learn more about vehicle/car safety here

NBC5 reported that the boy’s mother came home to drop off her two children and the older child got out of the car. The mother thought the father had removed the child from the car seat and drove to a family member’s home for about five hours before returning home and finding the child in the backseat.

“What’s heartbreaking is that this is a serious public health issue that is totally preventable,” said Dana Walraven, Community Health Outreach manager at Cook Children’s and Safe Kids Tarrant County Coordinator. “Every mom and dad out there must realize it can happen to you. Texas leads the nation in child heat-related car deaths.”

Safe Kids Worldwide says that heatstroke is the leading cause of non-crash, vehicle-related deaths for children.

As anyone who lives in a state like Texas can attest, summer-like temperatures can occur even in winter. But it doesn’t take a scorching hot day for a child to be in danger. Heatstroke deaths have been recorded in 11 months of the year in nearly all 50 states.

Heatstroke, also known as hyperthermia, occurs when the body isn’t able to cool itself quickly enough and the body temperature rises to dangerous levels.

Young children are particularly at risk as their bodies heat up three to five times faster than an adult’s. When a child’s internal temperature gets to 104 degrees, major organs begin to shut down. And when that child’s temperature reaches 107 degrees, the child can die.

Because of this, and because cars heat up so quickly – 19 degrees in 10 minutes – tragedies can happen faster than you think. Symptoms can quickly progress from flushed, dry skin and vomiting to seizures, organ failure and death.

“We still have to get the word out that there’s never a safe time to leave your child in the car,” said Sharon Evans,Trauma/Injury Prevention coordinator at Cook Children’s, said. “We’ve seen children die in February. We hope people will take extra precaution in never leaving a child in the car.”

Safe Kids Worldwide says that heatstroke is the leading cause of non-crash, vehicle related deaths for children and that young children are particularly at risk as their bodies heat up three to five times faster than an adults’.

It’s hard to imagine someone forgetting a child is in the car, but people these mistakes during their busy day-to-day lifestyle. Safe Kids recommend the “ACT” method to prevent tragedy to your child or to a child you see left in a car:

• A: Avoid heatstroke-related injury and death by never leaving your child alone in a car, not even for a minute. And make sure to keep your car locked when you’re not in it so kids don’t get in on their own.
• C: Create reminders by putting something in the back of your car next to your child such as a briefcase, a purse or a cell phone that is needed at your final destination. This is especially important if you’re not following your normal routine. Evans suggests parents even take off one of their shoes and place it in the back seat. 
• T: Take action. If you see a child alone in a car, call 911. Emergency personnel want you to call. They are trained to respond to these situations. One call could save a life.

Last year, 24 kids died in the U.S. and from 1998 to present, 676 children have died.

“What’s heartbreaking is that this is a serious public health issue that is totally preventable,” said Dana Walraven, Community Health Outreach manager at Cook Children’s and Safe Kids Tarrant County Coordinator. “Every mom and dad out there must realize it can happen to you. Texas leads the nation in child heat-related car deaths.”

Parents may mistakenly think they can safely leave a child in a vehicle for a “quick” errand, but that’s simply not true. Temperatures inside the car can be 20 or more degrees hotter than the temperature outside, rising to dangerous levels in minutes. Unfortunately, it only takes a few minutes for tragedy to occur.

Safe Kids Worldwide says that heatstroke is the leading cause of non-crash, vehicle-related deaths for children.

“Heat is much more dangerous to children than it is to adults,” Walraven said. “When left in a hot vehicle, a young child’s core body temperature may increase 3 to 5 times faster than that of an adult. This could cause permanent injury or death.”

Heatstroke, or hyperthermia, occurs when the body isn’t able to cool itself quickly enough and the body temperature rises to dangerous levels.

Safe Kids recommend the “ACT” method to prevent tragedy to your child or to a child you see left in a car:

• A: Avoid heatstroke-related injury and death by never leaving your child alone in a car, not even for a minute. And make sure to keep your car locked when you’re not in it so kids don’t get in on their own.
• C: Create reminders by putting something in the back of your car next to your child such as a briefcase, a purse or a cell phone that is needed at your final destination. This is especially important if you’re not following your normal routine.
• T: Take action. If you see a child alone in a car, call 911. Emergency personnel want you to call. They are trained to respond to these situations. One call could save a life.

It’s difficult to think that as parents, we could “forget” our children, but it happens each year with no exception to socioeconomic or education level. Often times, a change in routine, a distraction along the way, or the event a child falls quietly asleep, unseen, in the back seat, allows for a parent/caregiver to “forget” and leave a child in the car.

Here are some important tips to help prevent unintentional injury to your child:

1. Dial 911 if you see an unattended child in a car. Sometimes, people don’t want to get involved or just assume the parents are on the way out. But as you read earlier, it doesn’t take long for a child to die in a hot car. If you see a child or children alone in a car without an adult, call 911 immediately.
2. Never leave your child alone in a vehicle, even for 1 minute. Windows left slightly open will not affect rising temperatures in the car.
3. Set safe habits: leave a cell phone, purse, briefcase, etc. in the back seat before driving, forcing you to always check the back seat and see a child is/is not back there.
4. Program your cell phone and/or computer to remind you to drop off your child each day.
5. Have a plan with your daycare provider to contact you within a few minutes of being late or absent. Let your daycare know that you want them to call you if you are late or you have not called in saying your child will not be in that day.
6. Teach children not to play in any vehicle.
7. Lock all car doors, even at home.
8. If a child goes missing, always check the cars and trunks.

Learn more by clicking here. Also, visit noheatstroke.org for the latest on heatstroke deaths of children in vehicles.

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Every year children are rushed to the emergency room to be treated for car related injuries, many don't even involve traffic or another car. Some injuries occur without the car ever leaving the driveway. Click here for some of the top dangers to be aware of and the key things you can do to help make your car safer for your kids.