KIDS 'N CARS Calls For Extra Caution in or Around Parked Cars

At least 46 children died and another 144 were injured or put at risk so far this year because they were left unattended in or around a parked vehicle

SAN FRANCISCO, July 5 -- "Parents and caregivers continue to underestimate the dangers of leaving children unattended in or near vehicles," says Janette Fennell, co-founder and executive director of KIDS 'N CARS. "These preventable tragedies happen because adults are naive about the dangers of leaving children in or around cars."

KIDS 'N CARS reports 46 children have died this year when left unattended in or around vehicles:

28 were backed over in a driveway or parking lot 9 from heat exhaustion 6 set a vehicle into motion 2 strangled by power windows 1 entangled in a seatbelt A new report by the National Centers for Injury Control and Prevention (CDC) includes national statistics about this previously unrecognized issue. From July 1, 2000, through June 30, 2001, an estimated 9,160 children aged 14 years and younger were treated for nonfatal injuries in U.S. hospital emergency rooms, and 78 died in or near motor vehicles not in traffic.

Phyllis F. Agran, MD, Professor and Director of the Pediatric Injury Prevention Research Group at the University of California-Irvine says, "This is a major breakthrough in documenting a critical injury risk. The CDC report provides the data needed to convince public policy makers across the country of the need to pass state laws prohibiting children from being left unattended in a vehicle."

KIDS 'N CARS is advocating for a national surveillance system to understand how many children are being injured or killed when unattended in or around vehicles, and it is working with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to solicit assistance in data collection and remedies for these preventable, tragic incidents.

KIDS 'N CARS recommends:

Never leave children alone in a vehicle, even for a moment Teach children to never play in, around or behind a vehicle Always keep vehicles locked Keep keys and remote openers out of children's reach Install automotive cameras or backup detection devices Keep toys and sports equipment off driveways Make sure all passengers have left the car after parking When a child is missing, check vehicles and trunks immediately KIDS 'N CARS, a program of the Trauma Foundation, based at San Francisco General Hospital is the first and only nonprofit organization dedicated solely to the prevention of injuries and death due to unattended children in and around vehicles. For additional information, visit www.kidsncars.org .