CRESTVIEW — Lt. Don Fountain wants no one to suffer the agony he imagines a Bay County mother experienced after leaving her toddler locked in a hot car.
The 18-month-old girl died June 2 after being left inside a car at Cedar Grove Elementary, the Bay County Sheriff’s Office reported.
“It’s a criminal act to leave a child unattended in a vehicle,” Fountain, the Crestview Police Department's spokesman, said. “But how will you feel as a parent or a guardian if you leave that child unattended and the child dies as a result of your actions?
Watch Crestview Police Lt. Don Fountain explain the dangers of small children in hot cars>>
“I don’t know which would be worse; having to live with the fact that you helped a child die or the criminal consequences that you may have to deal with.”
CAN'T HEAR, CAN'T SEE
Fountain worked with local videographer Ken Nielsen to produce a public awareness video that reminds parents to check for children whenever exiting their vehicle.
On Thursday, Nielsen’s 14-day-old grandson, Brailey Nielsen, made his video debut, sleeping soundly while strapped in his car seat in the back of a vehicle.
That, said Dr. Joel Rubenstein, North Okaloosa Medical Center pediatric hospitalist, is a major reason busy and distracted parents overlook their children in the back of the car.
“The younger kids — less than 2 — are usually sleeping, so obviously you don’t hear them,” Rubenstein said. “Some seats face backwards, so not only can you not hear them, you can’t see them.
“You can’t hear and you can’t see them. You’re distracted and that’s when, sadly, you can forget about them.”
'KIDS DON'T HANDLE HEAT'
Fortunately for Brailey, the car was left running with the air conditioning on during the brief period the CPD's spot was videotaped.
Not all children are so lucky — each year, 30 to 40 American kids die when left in hot cars, according to Rubenstein.
“The temperature rises quickly,” he said. “It can go from 80 degrees to 170 in 15 minutes, depending on the car, with the closed car, the heat outside, and the windows to magnify the heat.
“That leads to hyperthermia. Kids don’t handle heat as well as adults because of their small body size. If you’re overwhelmed by heat, sweating is not going to be enough if you’re a child.”
Even if the child is rescued from a hot car, permanent damage can rapidly occur, Rubenstein said.
“If your core body temp rises above 107.6, that’s when cell damage and brain tissue breaks down,” he said. “Your brain cells die. That’s permanent damage.”
“In a few minutes, a vehicle can reach excessive temperatures and then we’re investigating a child’s death instead of a forgetful parent,” Fountain said.
'LOOK AROUND'
Fountain said leaving the engine and air conditioning running while going into a business “for just a few minutes” is unsafe.
“What if the vehicle is carjacked?” he said. “We have people who say, ‘Well, I was only going to run in and pay for my gas and the car got stolen.’”
Crestview community policing Officer Sam Kimmons said devices such as the MyCue Streamer, which unclips from a child’s car seat and snaps onto the driver’s key ring while the child is in the seat, make a good reminder for busy parents that their little one is aboard.
Rubenstein said visually inspecting the back of a car, especially if the car seat is in back, should be part of every parent’s routine when exiting the vehicle.
“Anytime you’re ready to get out of the car, just look around,” he said. “Even if you’re 100 percent sure your wife took the child, just look around anyway. Look in the back seat.
“It sounds ridiculous to forget your kid in the car, but it happens.”
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MyCUE STREAMERS
The Crestview Police Department has a limited number of MyCue Streamers for parents with small children who ride in car seats.
The streamer attaches to the child’s seat. The driver can strap the child in, unclip the streamer and snap it to a key ring to remind them the child is aboard.
Contact community policing Officer Sam Kimmons, 305-7831, for a free streamer.
Email News Bulletin Staff Writer Brian Hughes, follow him on Twitter or call 850-682-6524.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Crestview police warn residents about kids, hot cars and death (VIDEO)