High Temps Contribute to 2 Infant Deaths
July 25 -- The heat has turned deadly. Hardest hit are the elderly and the young.
The triple-digit temperatures blanketing many parts of the country today are already taking a toll on young lives — two babies left in their parents' cars have died of the heat this week.
A 2-month-old boy in San Jose, Calif., died Tuesday, and a 19-month-old girl in Missouri died Monday after being left unattended in their parents' vehicles in the afternoon heat.
And last Friday, Kari Engholm, a hospital CEO, was charged with neglect and involuntary manslaughter for leaving her 7-month-old daughter in a minivan while she rushed off to attend meetings last month.
Earlier this month, a Southern California foster mother left a 3-year-old girl in a sport utility vehicle for 15 minutes. The child died in the 108-degree temperatures.
Check temperatures in your area at weather.com.
Cracking the Windows Isn’t Enough
At least 21 children have died this year after being left in overheated cars. There have been at least 125 heat-related deaths of children left alone in vehicles since 1995, according to Kids 'N Cars, an advocacy group dealing with issues of child safety in automobiles.
A 1995 study in the Journal of the Louisiana State Medical Society found temperatures can reach 140 degrees in vehicles even when the windows were left slightly open.
"People truly do not understand how dangerous it is to leave a child," says Kids 'N Cars Director Janette Fennell, noting that temperature inside cars can reach dangerous levels even on mild days.
"A car is not a toy, a car is not a playground, and a car is certainly not a baby sitter."
Risks to Old and Young
The elderly are also vulnerable. Last weekend, 85-year-old Bernice Watts was found dead in her Oklahoma City home.
Police said her home had been without electricity for weeks and her home was "very hot."
With more high temperatures expected in coming weeks, the dangers will only increase.
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