MONTEREY COUNTY — Vehicular heatstroke is the leading cause of non-crash, vehicle-related death among children 14 years of age and younger in the United States.
Monterey County Health Department’s Public Health Bureau urges parents and caregivers to learn about the dangers of leaving children alone in closed cars and to help spread the word that “Once You Park, Stop, Look, Lock.”
Hot cars are deadly — internal vehicle temperatures rise quickly and can be up to 50 degrees warmer than outside air temperatures. Because a child’s body temperature increases three to five times faster than an adult’s, being inside a closed car on a cool day may still pose a threat to a child.
Since 1998, when safety advocates first began tracking vehicular heatstroke data, vehicle heatstroke has killed more than 1,011 children nationwide, with 39 of these deaths occurring in 2024. On average, one child dies from heatstroke every 10 days in the United States from being left in a car or crawling into an unlocked vehicle. Tragically, each of these deaths could have been prevented.
“Parents and caregivers think this sort of tragedy could never happen to them,” said Julia Marmolejo Muruato, Monterey County Car Seat Program supervisor. “Still, when a parent or caregiver’s routine is upended, they often feel rushed or hurried. It is during these moments that many of these tragedies occur. That is why it is important to remember that ‘Once You Park, Stop, Look, Lock.’”
Parents or caregivers can teach children that a vehicle is not a playground and that playing in and around a car is dangerous. Public Health officials urge all parents and caregivers to take three simple steps to help prevent hot car deaths.
First, when getting out of a car, make a habit of checking the entire vehicle, especially the back seat. Second, never leave a child in a vehicle unattended, even for one minute. Finally, after removing children from the vehicle, always lock the car and put the keys out of reach.
For more information on vehicle heatstroke, what to do if you see a child trapped in a vehicle, and warning signs of heatstroke, visit nhtsa.gov/campaign/heatstroke. For current data, visit noheatstroke.org.
