In just 30 minutes, the cabin of a car can reach 40 degrees Celsius and become dangerous for people, and after that point, the temperature increases exponentially.

Especially in the warm countries of the world, such as Greece, the stay of small children in the cabin even for a few minutes is prohibited.

At the beginning of May, the tragedy in Arta, where a young father forgot his baby in the car and it died, shocked the whole of Greece.

What is hyperthermia – heat stroke

Children are more vulnerable to heatstroke and it can be prevented. THE temperature of a child’s body rises three to five times faster than that of an adult. When a child is left in a closed vehicle, the child’s temperature can rise quickly and the situation can become dangerous.

THE heat stroke is the overheating (hyperthermia) of the body, i.e. an increase in temperature which can reach high and dangerous levels. Its symptoms may resemble those of a heart attack or stroke.

The research team at KidsandCars.org recognizes that when children are in stationary closed cars, there is a significant risk of death due to hyperthermia (heat stroke).

Even if the car windows are 5 cm open, the temperature can rise to very high levels.

Death from heatstroke in the car is unfortunately one of the effects of car use, the increasing amount of time children spend in them or parental ignorance.

Unfortunately, there is an increasing number of parents who “forget” their child in the car and at the same time there is the category of those parents who leave their child alone in the car to do their chores, considering that this is not dangerous.

We should be aware of the fact that the interior of a vehicle heats up very quickly. The temperature inside the car can reach up to 50 degrees Celsius within minutes, even on a not particularly hot day. Leaving the windows slightly open does not help slow the temperature rise, nor does it significantly reduce the maximum temperature.

In the US, the average number of child deaths from heatstroke in vehicles is 37 per year (one every 9 days), while 87% of children who die from heatstroke in vehicles are 3 years old and younger. 54% of deaths from heatstroke in vehicles involve children under one year of age.

In Greece where the ambient temperatures are particularly high and given that the summer in our country is particularly hot, the risk for children who are left in the car for even a short time is very great.

The signs signs that a child has hyperthermia or heatstroke are intense redness, an increase in temperature, moist or dry skin, no sweating, a strong and fast pulse, or on the contrary a weak and slow pulse, wheezing and strange behavior . In such an event, the child should be cooled immediately and then medical assistance should be provided.

On the other hand, if there is a child alone in a car, the police must first be called and at the same time a way must be found to find the child from the car’s cabin.