Don’t leave children, pets in cars
35ºc outside, but 50ºc inside
ER24 has issued a warning to parents that in no circumstances should they leave their children or pets in a vehicle unattended – even if it is for only a few minutes.
This is after reports that two men were arrested in Welkom at the weekend after a four-year-old child was left in a locked car in blazing heat outside a shopping mall for almost two hours.
The centre’s security made three announcements for the owner of the car in the mall and at the nearby casino. The men arrived two hours later, saying they had gone shopping for shoes.
In a separate incident, Shelly Khumalo appeared in the Vereeniging Magistrate’s court yesterday on charges of child neglect.
She had allegedly left two of her children, a six-month-old baby and a two-year-old child, in a vehicle parking lot at a mall.
Werner Vermaak, spokesman for ER24, said a child or infant exposed to excessive heat would sweat terribly, become severely dehydrated and lose life-sustaining electrolytes.
Extreme temperatures could lead to seizures, brain damage, liver or kidney failure and even death.
While the temperature outside could reach 33ºc, inside it could top 50ºc within 20 minutes.
The Daily News contacted several shopping malls and casinos in Durban and most said that they had not received reports of parents leaving their children in their vehicles in their parking lots, but there had been reports of pets left in vehicles.
Car guards said it was common for shoppers to leave their pets in the car for about two or three hours while they shopped.
Ommar Issa, a guard at Game City, said it was often the case with dogs.
“They leave dogs mostly. This happens once or twice a week. They also leave children under the age of eight in the car,” Issa said.
Another car guard at Game City, Isaac Nduwimana, said when this happened they called security guards who informs the centre manager.
Kloof and Highway SPCA marketing manager Janine Kyle said it was common for people to leave their pets in the car for a long time at malls while they shopped.
She said leaving pets for more than five minutes in a car was dangerous and could lead to the pet dying.
Kyle said: “If you leave a pet at home, make sure it has enough water and that it’s in a cooler place.”
National SPCA spokeswoman Christine Kuch said a recent study by General Motors showed that a car parked in the sun on a day when the temperature was 95F (35ºc) would have an inside temperature of more than 120F (48ºc) within 20 minutes and it increased as time went by.
She said the smaller the person the more quickly the body temperature rose, causing heatstroke when a person’s core temperature reached 48ºc. This also applied to animals.
Kuch said if anyone saw an animal left in a vehicle he or she must contact the nearest security or police officer or call the SPCA.
“Speedy action is required. It is no use taking the registration number and reporting the cruelty later. By that time, the animal would have died. Why not carry the number of your local SPCA on your cellphone for emergencies?”
Kuch said even if the window was open an inch the temperature still soared.