Police warn of dangers of leaving kids, animals in cars

With the onset of Summer again on us, police have sent out a timely warning to parents with young children and the owners of animals in motor vehicles.

Crime Prevention Officer Senior Constable Michael Hogan, quoting advice from the NRMA, said: “It only takes a few seconds for the heat in the vehicle to rapidly escalate to a point where exhaustion and loss of consciousness quickly takes over.

“The inside of a motor vehicle can go from 0c to 60c in five minutes.

“Parents are reminded that even on the warm days we are presently experiencing, the intense heat can dehydrate a young person quickly, and cause serious irreversible injury within minutes.

“On a typical Australian summer day, the temperature inside a parked car can be 30c to 40c degrees hotter than the outside
temperature. That means that the temperature inside a car could be as high as 70c degrees.”

Other facts:

• 75% of the temperature increase occurs within five minutes of closing the car.
• Dark-coloured cars reach slightly higher temperatures than lighter-coloured cars.
• Large cars heat up as fast as small cars.
• The colour of the interior has little effect on the increase of the temperature.
• Having the windows down 5cm only causes a slight decrease in temperatures with an outside temperature of around 30c.
• Research shows that the inside of a car can reach 78c degrees in a closed car and 70c in a car with windows down.

WHAT ARE THE RISKS?

• The temperature and humidity inside the car begin to increase and the airflow decreases.
• As the temperature increases inside the car, the child can begin to develop heat stress and start to dehydrate.
• The younger the child, the more sensitive to heat they are.
• As the child becomes distressed and tries to get out of their restraint, they could be at risk of strangulation on the   harness.

Related posts:

1. Police warn holiday makers to be wary of thieves
2. Let the kids have their say, says academic
3. Police warn firearm owners to be aware of licence expiry date
4. Police warn of petrol thefts
5. Be wary of internet auction sites, police warn

Related Articles:

Related posts:

1. Police warn holiday makers to be wary of thieves
2. Let the kids have their say, says academic
3. Police warn firearm owners to be aware of licence expiry date
4. Police warn of petrol thefts
5. Be wary of internet auction sites, police warn