HOUSTON – TranStar held a news conference Wednesday on ways to help prevent heat injuries and hot car deaths this summer.
The Houston area is expected to see several days of 100+ degree temperatures across much of Texas, TranStar said. A 10-month-old child has already died in Houston this year due to having a heatstroke after being left in a hot vehicle. As of Wednesday, five children have been killed across the United States in 2022, according to TranStar. There were 23 known deaths from what is defined as pediatric vehicular heat stroke in 2021, two of those deaths were reported in Texas and in 2020, five deaths occurred in Texas.
SEE ALSO: Child hot car deaths: Tips to not forget your little one’s in the car this summer
TranStar will run its Heatstroke Prevention Awareness campaign from April to September, which are the hottest months of the year.
Officials said many deaths have happened when morning routine changes, likely when a child is being dropped off at a caregiver, such as childcare, or at a school.
Here are the following tips to help prevent such tragedies:
- Remain vigilant
- Look back before driving off to make sure no one is in the vehicle
- Keep a teddy bear or item in the backseat to help you remember
- Make sure your child is not left behind
- Lock car in driveway or garage
- Never leave a child in a car, even for a minute
- Rolling down a window does not help and heat stroke can happen on a cool day
- If you see a child left in a car, call 911
- Look before you lock