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July 13, 2006
L.A. TIMES PROBES DEATHS IN OVEN CARS AND SOME REMEDIES
Two articles in the Los Angeles times, Ovens We Drive and Trying to Save Kids in Hot Cars, have documented the hazards of overheated auto interiors during warm-weather months, especially for children. Reporter Ralph Vartabedian found that child deaths from heat exposure in cars doubled from 20 annually in the mid-1990s to 40 in 2004. Last year, the number stood at 35.
The reason? "After small children were killed by powerful air bags in the early 1990s", Vertabedian writes, "the federal government issued a recommendation put all babies in rear-facing carriers in the rear seat and put young children in the rear seat, as well. Deaths dropped from a peak of 60 in 1995 to zero by 2002. The solution included a new generation of air bags. Mission accomplished. But there was an unintended consequence. Parents somehow began to forget they put their babies in those rear-facing seats. And when these kids were left trapped in cars parked in the sun, they were handed a death sentence
Even on a day with moderate temperatures, a car's indoor air can reach more than 160 degrees. A car can heat up to a fatal temperature within 10 to 15 minutes on a hot day. Children have died in cars even on days when the outdoor temperature was as low as 70 degrees."
The articles explore in detail some possible countermeasures, including a once-available solar-powered air circulation system that kicks in when parked cars become overheated. Also discussed is an alarm that is triggered when adults are exiting cars with children still in the rear seating area.
Posted by MVHAP at July 13, 2006 03:01 PM