In New York, a 2-year-old boy left in a car dies
Experts and advocacy groups encourage caregivers and parents to follow precautions and safety tips to prevent a tragic heat-related accident.
5 life-saving suggestions for hot cars
Studies have shown that hot cars can be fatal to children and pets trapped inside after just one hour.
USA TODAY
Across the country, several young children died in July because they were left in hot cars during the ongoing, record-breaking heat wave that has swept across much of the United States in recent weeks.
The incidents include a 2-year-old in New York, a 2-month-old in New Jersey, a 5-year-old in Nebraska and a 2-year-old in Arizona, all of whom died in the past week, according to the advocacy group Kids and Car Safety. In total, there were at least 12 deaths of children in overheated cars nationwide in 2024.
Higher than usual temperatures have put millions of Americans on heat alert this summer, and local authorities have repeatedly warned residents about the dangerous effects of extreme heat. These high temperatures can pose a health risk, especially to vulnerable populations, and put children at risk.
Safety experts have explained that temperatures inside a vehicle can rise quickly — as much as 20 degrees within the first 10 minutes — leading to potentially fatal accidents. Children left unattended in parked vehicles are at “the greatest risk of heat stroke and possibly death,” according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, an average of 40 children die of heat stroke in a car each year. Since 1990, more than 1,090 children have died in overheated cars in the United States, according to data from Kids and Car Safety.
“About 88 percent of children who die in overheated cars are three years old or younger, and the majority (55 percent) were unknowingly abandoned by otherwise loving, responsible parents or caregivers,” the advocacy group said in a press release Wednesday.
Tips to avoid summer tragedies: The death of children due to overheated cars can happen in any family.
As of Wednesday, at least four children have died since July 9 after being found in vehicles during the heat wave.
A 2-year-old died Tuesday night after being left in a car in Monticello, a village about 64 miles west of Poughkeepsie, New York. The Times Herald-Record, part of the USA TODAY Network, reported that police officers responded to a 911 call around 6:45 p.m. Tuesday that a child had gone into cardiac arrest in a car outside an apartment complex.
The police, the fire department and a paramedic tried to resuscitate the child, but their efforts were unsuccessful.
On Monday, authorities said an 8-week-old girl died after being left in a hot car for an “extended period of time” in Lakewood, New Jersey, a community about 38 miles west of Trenton. The Asbury Park Press, also part of the USA TODAY Network, reported that police responded to a 911 call about a baby in cardiac arrest around 1:45 p.m. Monday.
Police found rescue workers attempting to save the child, but the child died at the scene, according to Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer. Authorities concluded the child died from being in the car for a long time, Billhimer said.
The child’s father, Avraham Chaitovsky, 28, has been charged with endangering the welfare of a child. The investigation is ongoing and more charges may follow, Billhimer added.
In another incident, a 5-year-old boy died in Nebraska on July 10 after being found unconscious in a vehicle, according to Omaha police. “At this time, it appears the child was left unattended in the vehicle for an extended period of time,” police said in a news release.
The boy’s foster mother, Juanita Pinon, 40, was charged with child abuse by neglect resulting in death and booked into the Douglas County Correctional Center, police said. NBC News reported that the child was left unattended in the car for about seven hours while Pinon worked.
An Arizona man faces first-degree murder and child abuse charges after his 2-year-old daughter was found unconscious in an overheated car on July 9. Court documents obtained by USA TODAY on Tuesday show the man was “distracted by video games” and “regularly” left all three of his children alone in the car.
Christopher Scholtes, 37, was putting away groceries and playing video games after leaving the toddler in the car for hours outside the family’s home in Marana, a city about 100 miles (160 kilometers) south of Phoenix. The child was later found “still strapped into his child restraint” and was pronounced dead at the hospital.
Does the number of deaths from the heat wave count? Don’t trust them. The real death toll is higher.
The deaths came amid a relentless heat wave in recent weeks that has left many parts of the country ablaze. The heat wave has set dozens of records, including the all-time heat record in the first five days of July in more than 50 cities in California and Nevada, AccuWeather reported.
According to heat.gov, more than 106 million people from the West Coast to the East Coast were on heat alert on Wednesday.
Although authorities and experts have determined that heat-related deaths and illnesses are preventable, heat-related deaths in the United States are increasing each year. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, there were approximately 1,602 heat-related deaths in 2021, 1,722 in 2022, and 2,302 in 2023.
Experts and advocacy groups encourage caregivers and parents to follow precautions and safety tips to prevent a tragic heat accident:
- Place a visual cue, such as the child’s diaper bag or another object, on the passenger seat to show that the child is with you.
- Never leave a child unattended in a vehicle.
- Make it a habit to check the back seat and door every time you park. To do this, place one item you can’t start your day without in the back seat.
- Always keep vehicles locked, especially when parked.
- Never leave keys within reach of children.
- Ask your daycare center to call you immediately if your child does not arrive as scheduled.
“It is important for everyone to understand that children are more vulnerable to heat stroke and that all deaths in hot cars are preventable,” says heat.gov.
Contributors: Amaris Encinas, USA TODAY; Ken Serrano, Asbury Park Press; Mike Randall, Middletown Times Herald-Record
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