State Officials Warn Parents: Don't Leave Your Children Unattended In Cars
BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- A little girl left inside a hot car in Baltimore is Maryland's first heat-related death of the summer. Now there is a warning from state health officials to all parents.
Meghan McCorkell has more on the dangers.
Officials say nearly 40 children die every year from heat-related illnesses after being left inside a car.
Two-year-old Leasia Carter--killed when she was trapped inside a scalding hot car for more than 16 hours.
"She was the love of my life. I ain't going to lie," said Lisa Carter, grandmother.
Doctors say the child suffered second-degree burns.
Her father, Wilbert Leon Carter, told investigators he went out for drinks, fell asleep and forgot his daughter was in the car. He's now charged with second-degree murder.
Now state health officials have put out a warning, telling parents they should never leave their children unattended inside a car.
So far this year, across the country, eight children have died inside hot cars.
Last year, 32 deaths were reported.
Since 1998, 600 children have died after being left inside a car.
"These are preventable acts. This is not something that we should have to deal with or have to see," said Lt. T.J. Smith, Anne Arundel County Police Department.
Lt. Smith says these types of calls come in far too often, and it doesn't have to be a hot day for tragedy to happen.
"Today is a relatively nice day--temperatures in the 70s or low 80s. But the inside of a car is close to 100 degrees, and it gets there really quickly," he said.
A new online campaign challenges adults to spend ten minutes locked in a hot car. Many only made it a few minutes.
"I can only imagine how a child or a baby would feel in there just waiting for someone to come and get them," the campaign video said.
A campaign that advocates hope makes parents more cautious and prevents another tragedy.
Experts say on a hot day, a car will heat up 19 degrees every ten minutes.
There were eight confirmed heat-related deaths in the state of Maryland last summer.
