PETALING JAYA: The recent deaths of young children left in cars and then dying due to thermal injury is of concern, says a group of concerned individuals.
In a statement today, they said that 20 to 30 minutes under the full sun in closed vehicle is all that is needed to kill a young child.
"This is not just a Malaysian problem but a worldwide worry.
"For example, in the US, more than 1,000 children have died in ‘hot vehicles’ and another 7,000 plus survived with varying injuries since 1990.
"It has been dubbed the ‘forgotten baby syndrome’," they said in the statement.
According to the group, they do not want to apportion blame and say it is not a issue of neglect but one of modern life where the daily cares of the world may tax memories.
"Our hearts go out to the bereaved parents and we hope they receive the support and understanding needed at such a tragic time of loss," they said, adding that everyone needs to work together to prevent such fatalities.
The group proposed five ways to minimise cases of children left in cars.
> Firstly, keep an important item in the back seat with your child, an item that you cannot do without at a meeting, work or shopping. For example, keep your purse or your hand phone or shoes on the floorboard of the back seat. This will serve to remind you as you leave the car.
> Secondly, keep an object in the front seat to remind you of your child, like a stuffed animal. Swap the child and the object when you place the child in the back seat and vice versa when you take your child out of the vehicle.
> Thirdly, remind your child care provider, babysitter or kindergarten teacher to call you if your child does not turn up at the correct time. This can serve as a back-up safety net.
> Fourthly, as the public, it is our vital duty to stop whenever we see any child left alone in a car. Find out why and call the police if you cannot immediately find the parents. Don't wait more than a few minutes for the driver to return before taking action. Never hesitate to rescue a child trapped in a car; break a window if necessary.
> Fifthly, there are technologies being developed to support parents and we should keep abreast of them - car seats with built-in sensors/alarms, apps with alerts/reminders and GPS trackers/distance alerts for our children. We need to push for these to become routine in all cars sold in Malaysia. Note that Waze has inbuilt reminders to support parents transporting children.
