It was 95 degrees in Boise. A family returned to their car after a doctor’s appointment: a mother, grandmother, toddler, and infant. After buckling the infant into a car seat, they shut the door and walked around to the other side. But the car was locked. Where were the keys?
Where were the keys?!
That’s when they realized—the keys were locked inside. With the baby.
In growing panic, they dialed 911. Boise Police Crime Prevention Supervisor Ed Fritz remembers this day.
“It was a very, very hot day and this was a very small infant,” he says. “It was not going to be good to leave the baby in there too long.”
Boise Police Department officers arrived on scene, but with the fire department and locksmith still minutes away, they needed to act fast. With precision, they broke the front seat window, away from the baby, and were able to unlock the car. That child was safe—but not all children are as fortunate.
In 2024, 39 children in the U.S. died from vehicle-related heatstroke—a 35% increase from 2023 (NHTSA).
Pets fall victim, too. Already in 2025, PETA reports that 97 pets have died due to heat-related causes, and these are just the ones that are reported.
These deaths are preventable, yet they happen every year.
We’re here to talk about:
- Why hot cars are so dangerous
- Common misconceptions that put kids and pets at risk
- What you can do if you see this happening
The fatal danger of heatstroke in a hot car
Heatstroke begins when the core body temperature reaches about 104°F.
Death occurs at a core body temperature of 107°F or above.
In vehicles, it doesn’t take long to surpass these temperatures. The interior of a car can rise 40-50 degrees hotter than outside temperatures in less than an hour, even with the windows cracked. A 70-degree day can reach dangerously high temperatures of up to 120°F inside a vehicle.
“Think of it like an oven,” Ed says. “It can reach unbearable temperatures sitting out there in the sun.”
Ed and his team have even baked cookies in a car to demonstrate just how hot it can get. It’s not uncommon to see temperatures inside a vehicle reach 130-140 degrees on a hot day.
Children are especially vulnerable because their body temperature rises three to five times faster than an adult’s. That means heatstroke can begin in as little as ten minutes.
“While we might be sweaty in a car as a 20, 30, or 40-year-old, that kid is getting to critical levels very, very quickly,” Ed says. “That can cause all sorts of internal damage and brain damage in a much shorter time.”
Key takeaways:
- Cars can heat up rapidly, climbing to 40–50 degrees hotter than the outside temperature.
- A child’s body temperature rises 3-5 times faster than an adult’s.
- Left in a hot car, heatstroke can occur after only 10 minutes.
Did you know? The inside of a car can get 40–50 degrees hotter than the outside temperature!🔥 Heatstroke can occur in as little as 10 minutes. Look before you lock! Don't leave children or pets in the car. #LookB4YouLock
4 common misconceptions and tragic mistakes that can lead to heatstroke
Captain Zachary Walls has worked with the Ada County Sheriff’s Office for over 20 years. He and his team answer dispatch calls for lockout scenarios like the one described above, or when a bystander calls because they noticed a child or pet locked in a vehicle. In Idaho, he says, the majority of the calls they receive are lockouts due to an accident and are rarely fatal.
“We’ll get calls about a child getting stuck inside the car while Mom went in to grab a sibling, or a baby is in the car in the garage, Mom went to grab something, and the car locks,” Captain Walls says. “We’ll still get law enforcement involved to help.”
However, there are misconceptions that can lead to heat stroke emergencies and sometimes death. Here are four of the most common scenarios that lead to heatstroke:
#1. “I dropped them off.”
When you hear about a child left in a car, many parents have the same thought: “I would never do that.” It seems preposterous to imagine forgetting a child in the backseat. However, everyone is at risk. Sleep deprivation, a change in routine, or a switch-up of caregivers can all contribute to a tragic accident occurring.
In the past few months, heartbreaking headlines have emerged about children who died due to heatstroke after being left in the car. Recent news out of Virginia, Texas, and Ohio all share the same story: a parent drove to work, thinking they had dropped the child off at daycare. Instead, these children were left in the car for hours.
In San Antonio, Texas, Police Chief William McManus responded to a tragedy where a 5-year-old boy died after being left in the car for over eight hours.
“This serves as a tragic reminder: check the backseat. Do not leave children or pets in the vehicle,” he says.
Don’t be the person who thinks, “It could never happen to me.” Always check the backseat.
#2. “It’s not that hot out.”
A common misconception is that if a car is parked in the shade or if it doesn’t seem too hot outside, a child or pet will be okay in the car. However, as described above, temperature can be deceiving. The temperature in a car rises exponentially and can reach up to 40 to 50 degrees hotter than outside. Even a 70-degree day can be dangerous.
#3. “I’ll just crack the window.”
Some may think cracking the window lets air in and will offset the heat. In extreme heat, though, cracking the window does not make a difference.
“Just think of it like your oven,” Ed says. “If you crack the door of your oven, heat is going to be coming out, but it’s still very hot inside.”
#4. “It’s just for a minute—they’ll be fine.”
A quick search on Reddit for keywords like “leave child in car” yields hundreds of results. Some are parents asking if it’s really that bad to leave your child in the car for a quick errand, others are frustrated mothers saying their husbands think it’s ok to leave their child in the car, and still others are those wondering how a parent could ever even ask that question.
With all opinions aside, let’s take it from those who have to respond to heatstroke emergencies. Captain Walls and Supervisor Ed Fritz agree: It’s always a risk to leave a child in the car. Even if it’s not hot out, even if the A/C is on, even if it’s just for a quick trip into the drug store. What you expect to be a quick 5-minute trip can easily extend to 20 minutes, and you never know what could happen to your child while they are in the car.
“There’s always an inherent risk if you’re leaving a kid in a motor vehicle unattended,” Captain Walls says.
And it’s not just children, it’s pets and vulnerable adults too. The best rule of thumb is never to leave a child or pet in the car unattended.
How to prevent heatstroke
What can you do? Here are five ways to prevent heatstroke from occurring:
- Plan ahead.
If it’s going to be a hot day, plan your errands accordingly. Leave the pets at home.
“Don’t have purposeful trips planned where you’re going to leave and go shopping with your pet,” Ed says.
Check to see if the store allows pets inside. If they don’t, leave them at home. And if you have children with you, bring them inside—even if it’s just for a quick errand.
2. Use a physical reminder.
Leaving your purse or phone in the backseat can help jog your brain to check the backseat every time.
3. Listen to your “Rear Seat Reminder.”
Many new cars have Rear Seat Reminders that will automatically alert you to check your backseat. Don’t turn these off! This is a great new feature that will help prevent children from being accidentally left in the car.
“All four-door Subarus have a visual and audible warning that tells the driver, there’s something in the backseat,” Rob Studebaker, General Manager at Subaru Treasure Valley, says. “Other cars, like Tesla, have ‘Dog Mode’ which turns the car off while keeping the air on.”
Features like these will become increasingly prevalent with new models; by 2027, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) will mandate that all new cars have seat belt reminders for both front and rear seats. While the dings and beeps might sound annoying, they might also save a life.
4. At home, keep your car locked.
Another scenario Boise Police see is where a child was playing around a vehicle, and ends up shutting the door and locking themselves inside. Ed recommends keeping your car locked so children can’t get in without adult supervision. He also suggests teaching them how to unlock the car door themselves, just in case they are ever to get stuck inside.
5. No matter what, take your child with you.
Parents, we know it can be exhausting. When your three-year-old finally falls asleep in the car seat right as you pull up, it can be tempting to let them sleep. As a father of two, Ed gets it.
“I know that some days if they’re sleeping, great. You don’t want to do anything but let them sleep so you can get a little bit of rest,” he said. “But speaking as a father and as Boise Police Department, knowing what it would be for anyone to lose a child in such a tragic way, we owe it as a community and as a police department to do whatever we can to prevent that tragedy from happening.”
Community efforts make an impact. Every year, local businesses and non-profits join law enforcement in the Look Before You Lock campaign to spread the message far and wide. Treasure Valley Subaru has sponsored the campaign for the past three years, partnering with Boise Police to share heatstroke prevention tips for both children and pets. Rob joined Corporal Kyle Wills to discuss the importance of Look Before You Lock on Idaho Today with Melissa Paul, emphasizing the importance of always checking the backseat.
“We’re all about community, and giving back locally,” Rob says. “This was a good campaign that we wanted to be involved in—to do whatever we can to help prevent heatstroke for children and pets.”
"There is an inherent risk whenever you leave a child in a car unattended." Take them with you, no matter how short the errand. Look Before You Lock!
What to do as a bystander
If you see a child locked in a hot car, here’s what to do:
- Assess the situation. Look around to see if the parents might be close by.
- If there is no sign of the parents, call 911. The dispatch operator will ask for details on where the car is located, the behavior of the child (are they crying and sweating? Do they have water?), and walk you through how to respond.
- This is something dispatch may not tell you to do, but if the child appears to be in distress—crying, sweating, obviously overheating—consider breaking the window away from the child and retrieving them. You do not know how long the child has been in the car, and waiting for the police to arrive may be too late.
As Ed says, “If it comes between me having to pay for a window and someone losing their life, I’m going to choose me paying for the window every single time.”
Don’t forget about pets
All of these rules apply to pets as well. Ed has seen some horrible incidents where a dog was rescued out of a hot car alive, but had to be put down due to the extent of brain damage from heatstroke. Like children, the heat in a vehicle is much hotter and more dangerous for dogs than for adults: ”Imagine you’re in a hot car wearing a fur coat and stocking cap,” Ed says.
If you see a dog locked in a hot car, call 911. Law enforcement and animal control will show up to determine the best course of action and care for the animal.
Look Before You Lock!
An easy-to-remember mantra is “Look Before You Lock.” Write it on a Post-it in your car. When buckling in a child, make sure you have your keys in your hand before you shut the door. When leaving behind a vehicle, check every seat. Just to be sure. And as a rule of thumb, never leave a child in the car unattended—even for a quick run inside. It’s not worth the risk.
