Babies Dying In Hot Cars: Campaign Underway To Make It Stop

Health departments, law enforcement agencies, and organizations around the country will be handing out purple ribbons this month to remind parents and caretakers that leaving a child in a hot car – even for a few minutes – can kill.

“Not only is it against the law to leave a child in a vehicle unattended, more importantly, it’s a potentially deadly mistake,” said California Highway Patrol Officer Steve Carapia in a released statement issued today by the County of Riverside Department of Public Health.

State and local officials have joined together to promote August as Purple Ribbon Month and bring attention to the dangers of leaving babies and small children in parked vehicles. Each year emergency crews respond to incidents in which infants need medical attention after being left in vehicles. Sometimes it is too late – two children have died in California since June after being left in hot vehicles, according to the released statement.

The stories of those two deaths are heartbreaking.

KTVU covered the June 8 death of a 15-month-old boy who lost his life in Fresno after his parents accidentally forgot about him in their vehicle during a shopping excursion.

“ … somewhere in the exchange of getting everyone out of the car, each parent thought the other one had the baby,” the KTVU report read. 

A 4-month-old boy died July 27 in El Cajon after his parents left him unattended in a hot car parked at an apartment complex, NBC reported.

The following day, local police confirmed the parents were behind bars, according to the news report.

There have been at least 24 deaths of children left unattended in vehicles so far this year, the NBC report continued. In 2012, that number was 33, the news agency stated.

To help reduce the number of deaths from heatstroke, Riverside County health officials are reminding residents to “ACT”:

A: Avoid heatstroke-related injury and death - Never leave your child alone in a car. Make sure to keep your vehicle locked while not in it. This will prevent children from entering the vehicles alone. 

C: Create reminders - Make sure to place an item you will need when arriving at you final destination in the back, next to you child.

T: Take action - If you see a child alone in a car, call 911. Emergency personnel want you to call.

In January 2001, California passed a law making it illegal to leave a child 6 years or younger unattended inside a motor vehicle without the supervision of someone at least 12 years old. This law was spearheaded by the family of Kaitlyn Russell, a 6-month-old girl from Corona who died in August of 2000 after being left in a hot van, according to the county statement today.