PREVENTING HEATSTROKE IN CHILDREN

Did You Know?

A child’s body heats up three to five times faster than an adult’s body.
Heatstroke deaths have been recorded in 11 months of the year in nearly all 50 states.
More than half of heatstroke deaths occurred when a distracted caregiver forgot a quiet child was in the vehicle.
Creating reminders and habits is an effective way to ensure that a child is ...not forgotten in the vehicle.

Working For Change

To help prevent tragic and unnecessary deaths due to heatstroke, Brewster Fire Department is promoting Safe Kids Worldwide to launch Never Leave Your Child Alone in a Car, an education and awareness campaign geared toward parents and caregivers.

The Campaign Encourages Everyone to ACT

A: Avoid heatstroke-related injury and death by never leaving your child alone in a car, not even for a minute. Always lock your doors and trunks – even in your driveway. And keep your keys and key fobs out of the reach of kids.

C: Create reminders. Place something you'll need at your next stop - like a briefcase or cell phone - next to the child safety seat. It may seem simple, but can be a helpful reminder on a chaotic day.

T: Take action. If you see a child alone in a car, take action. Call 911. Emergency personnel are trained to respond to these situations.

Safe Kids and Brewster FD also supports National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s heatstroke education campaign, “WHERE'S BABY? LOOK BEFORE YOU LOCK!,” and welcomes the increased national coordination on the issue. In 2012, Safe Kids partnered with NHTSA Administrator David Strickland to host news conferences around the country to raise awareness about heatstroke in children and urge parents and caregivers to ACT to help prevent future tragedies.

Public Awareness

Increasing and reinforcing awareness of the dangers of leaving a child alone in a vehicle stands as the most effective remedy to heatstroke. Brewster Fire Department is working to raise public awareness to try and prevent further tragedies from happening. Stickers are available, free of charge, at the Brewster Village Clerk's Office to be put in your vehicles as a reminder to "LOOK BEFORE YOU LOCK!!".