Ambulance Victoria is urging parents to not leave children in locked cars after a spike in incidents across the weekend.
Paramedics responded to 11 callouts for children locked in cars on Saturday, January 24 alone, with one incident in Loddon Mallee.
As Victoria faces a week-long heatwave, and with temperatures expected to top mid-forties, AV director of emergency management Dale Armstrong urged parents to err on the side of caution when it comes to leaving children unattended.
“We are urging Victorians to heed this advice – it is never safe to leave children or older people unattended in vehicles, in any weather, but particularly when we know that our state is facing days of heatwave conditions,” he said.
Mr Armstrong said the temperature inside a vehicle could double within just 10 minutes and become deadly within 15 minutes.
A car could reach a scorching 70ºC – hot enough to cause severe burns – when the outside temperature hits 30ºC or higher, according to RACV.
“It is particularly dangerous for children to be left inside vehicles, as a child’s body temperature rises three to five times faster than an adult,” Mr Armstrong said.
“The message is simple – it is never safe to leave children in cars unattended.
“One call-out to a child locked in a car on a day like yesterday is too many – eleven is just ‘not on’.”
Heatwave warning issued for Northern Victoria
A heatwave warning has been issued for large parts of Victoria this week, with Echuca expected to reach a high of 45ºC on Tuesday, January 27.
Dangerous temperatures in the high 30 to mid-40s are forecast from Monday, January 26 to Saturday, January 31, with the most extreme heat on Tuesday and Wednesday before conditions gradually improve.
Heading into the predicted extreme weather, the Bureau of Meteorology advised everyone, especially older people, babies, children, people with medical conditions and pregnant women, to take immediate precautions during the severe heatwave.
It advised people to seek a place to keep cool and to close blinds, curtains and awnings early in the day to keep heat out of homes.
For further safety information before, during and after heatwaves, visit betterhealth.vic.gov.au/campaigns/survive-heat
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