It is NEVER safe to leave a toddler, disabled person or pet locked in a car, even in the winter. If you have a toddler in your household, lock your cars, even in your own driveway. Kids may play in cars or wander outside and get into a car and can die in 10 minutes! Based on data from 1998-2022, an average of 38 childhood heatstroke fatalities occur each year. Pediatric vehicular heatstroke deaths (PVHD) can occur year-round. See the latest information on PVHD here.
The sun's shortwave radiation (yellow in figure below) heats objects that it strikes. For example, a dark dashboard or seat can easily reach temperatures in the range of 180 to over 200°F. These objects (e.g., dashboard, steering wheel, child seat) heat the adjacent air by conduction and convection and also give off longwave radiation (red in figure below) which is very efficient at warming the air trapped inside a vehicle. Shown below are time lapse photos of thermometer readings in a car over a period of less than an hour. As the animation shows, in just over 2 minutes the car went from a safe temperature to an unsafe temperature of 94.3°F. This demonstration shows just how quickly a vehicle can become a death trap for a child.
Hyperthermia deaths aren't confined to summer months, they can happen at any time during the year. Below are just a few of MANY tragedies.
Adults also are susceptible to hyperthermia in vehicles. On July 12, 2001, a man died of heat stroke after falling asleep in his car with the windows rolled up in the parking lot of a supermarket in Hinds County, MS.
