Greene County News Report

FAIRBORN – With warmer temperatures in the forecast, police are reminding parents about the potential danger of leaving children in hot cars.

“It is absolutely essential to never leave a child unattended inside of a closed vehicle,” Kettering Medical Center Emergency Room Doctor Brian Springer said.

That’s what happened Sunday in the University Shoppes parking lot on Colonel Glenn Highway. People eating inside a restaurant took matters into their own hands when they heard a screaming baby inside a hot van with the parents nowhere in sight. The doors were unlocked and they were able to get the one-year-old girl out before police arrived.

“The onlookers in this situation did exactly the right thing,” Fairborn Police Officer James Hern said. “If the child looks like it’s in distress, always try to make entry into the vehicle.”

Doctors report since 1990 more than 600 children in the U.S. died trapped inside hot vehicles.

Fortunately, that wasn’t the case in Fairborn. According to officers, the parents were inside a smoke shop for about 20 minutes. They say they forgot the child was inside the vehicle.

“The temperature in an enclosed vehicle can go up by as much as 30 to 40 degrees within an hour,” Springer said.

Temperatures could reach 90 degrees this weekend. In a car, that temperature could become as high as 130 degrees.

“When the child was removed, it was sweating profusely,” Hern said.

Doctors say children have a more difficult time dealing with the heat. The younger the child, the greater the danger. According to doctors, leaving a child in a hot car can cause heatstroke, organ damage and even death.

Officials are hoping the close call in Fairborn will serve as a warning to other parents.

“Even if it’s 60 degrees outside and that sun’s blazing down, it will start getting hot inside of that car,” Springer said.

The parents are being charged with child endangering. Children’s Services is handling the case.