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May 1, 2026 – Washington, DC – On National Heatstroke Prevention Day, Kids and Car Safety is raising awareness and calling for immediate action to prevent hot car tragedies. With children continuing to lose their lives each year, the organization is urging families, caregivers, and communities to take simple, proactive steps and embrace available technologies that can help prevent these entirely avoidable deaths, along with raising public awareness.
“After almost three decades of public education, children are still dying at alarming and devastating rates. We know what works. Technology can, and must, be an essential part of the solution,” said Janette Fennell, founder and president of Kids and Car Safety.
The numbers remain staggering. More than 1,173 children have died in hot cars since 1990, as of May 1, 2026. Additionally, at least 7,500 more have survived with a range of injuries, many life-altering.*
“Hot car tragedies are every parent’s worst nightmare. And they don’t happen because someone didn’t love their child enough,” Fennell continued. “They happen because we’re human, and even the strongest love can’t compete with the limits of human memory.”
Most of us rely on reminders to get through the day, calendar alerts, phone notifications, and built-in prompts.
Our vehicles already use similar technology, including alerts if headlights are left on, reminders for oil changes and tire pressure, and warnings for low fuel or unbuckled seat belts.
If we use these systems to protect our vehicles, why not our children?
Neuroscience confirms that memory cannot be trained to never forget. When what’s forgotten is a sleeping baby in the back seat, the consequences can be catastrophic and entirely preventable.
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