FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 23, 2019
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Infant dies in van during a Washington DC press event focused on hot car deaths
Advocates and families convened in Washington, DC with members of Congress calling for technological solutions to preventable hot car tragedies
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Yesterday at a news conference in Washington, DC members of Congress were joined by family members who have lost loved ones in hot cars, safety advocates, first responders and medical professionals to talk about technology that is available now to help stop these needless fatalities. During this event a 5-month-old girl was dying inside a daycare van in Jacksonville, FL. The infant is the
8
th
child hot car fatality
in the U.S. already this year.
Yesterday’s news conference was live streamed on the KidsAndCars.org
Facebook page
and is available to view.
Today at 10 am EST, president and founder, Janette Fennell and parent advocate, Miles Harrison will testify before Congress on the need for technology to prevent hot car tragedies. The hearing is webcast and can be viewed live
here
or watched afterwards.
Last year
fifty-two
(52) children died in hot cars nationally, which is the highest number of fatalities in one year that KidsAndCars.org has documented in the over 20 years of collecting data. On average, 38 children die in hot cars every year. As education efforts and public awareness are at an all-time high, the number of children dying in hot cars is also at an all-time high.
After decades of warning the public about this problem, it is crystal clear that education alone is not enough. Thankfully, this tragic problem has a solution that is affordable and available. KidsAndCars.org will work with Congress to promote passage of the Hot Cars Act of 2019 which calls for the use of technology to end these disturbing deaths. The organization encourages the public to get involved and ask their members of Congress to support the Hot Cars Act.
President and founder of KidsAndCars.org, Janette Fennell said, “We are all completely devastated about the precious infant who lost her life in Jacksonville today. As a country, we are failing our children each day because this effective technology is not included as standard equipment in every vehicle. What are we waiting for? How many more children have to die?”
Cathy Chase, President of Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety said, “Summertime is upon us, and it should be a time of family fun.” She continued, “Unfortunately, it also marks a dangerous season during which children tragically lose their lives in hot cars after being unknowingly left behind. But right now, we have technology that could be put into cars to protect babies and to prevent the lives of parents, families and communities from shattering. Let’s get legislation passed to require an alert that has the potential to prevent child passengers from dying in hot cars and to protect the wholeness of families.”
Right now, somewhere in the United States, dozens of families are going about their daily lives unaware that by year’s end their child will die in a hot car. They will suffer the same loss that has already consumed over 900 families in our country. This will continue to happen until Congress directs the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to require a system to alert drivers if a child or animal is left behind..
As we push for technology as a solution, KidsAndCars.org urges parents to implement the
Look Before You Lock
safety checklist to keep their child safe from a hot car tragedy. The checklist provides simple habits for parents to make sure this never happens to their family.
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KidsAndCars.org
is a national nonprofit dedicated to saving the lives of young children and pets in and around vehicles. The organization is devoted to eliminating vehicle-related risks that were previously unrecognized through data collection, research and analysis, public education and awareness programs, policy change, product redesign and supporting families to channel their grief into positive change. These everyday incidents include being run over, hot car deaths, carbon monoxide poisoning, car theft with children/animals inside, falls, knocking cars into gear, drowning inside vehicle, underage drivers, power window strangulation, trunk entrapment, etc.
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