Avoidable deaths of children...

Heat kills by taxing the human body beyond its abilities. In a normal year, about 175 Americans succumb to the demands of summer heat. Among the large continental family of natural hazards, only the cold of winter -- not lightning, hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, or earthquakes -- takes a greater toll. In the disastrous heat wave of 1980, more than 1,250 people died, and those are the direct causalities. No one can know how many more deaths are advanced by heat wave weather -- how many diseased or aging hearts surrender, that under better conditions would have continued functioning.

Additionally, there is a great deal of truth in the expression: ``It's not the heat, it's the humidity.'' Not only is high humidity uncomfortable, it is also unhealthy. Heat-related illness occurs when a person's body can't properly cool itself by perspiring. Under extremely hot or humid conditions, sweating can't compensate enough to stave off a rapid rise in body temperature. The body's inability to cool itself is exacerbated when the humidity is high. Most susceptible are children and the aging, those who work out in the weather, and even well-trained athletes. Ultimately, very high body temperatures may damage the brain or other vital organs.

 Heat stroke can be prevented.

What really boggles my mind is the avoidable death of heat stroke in children who were left or trapped in an automobile in extreme heat, which can result in death within minutes. This year it has been really bad here for humid hot weather. Extreme heat outside results in quickly rising temps in an enclosed vehicle, just open your car door after leaving having had it locked up for awhile. A number of studies have shown that the temperature in an enclosed car or truck can be more than 30 degrees above the outside temperature after less than 20 minutes, and more than 40 degrees within a half-hour.  Leaving a window open just a crack makes no difference in the inside temperature of a vehicle. People should keep this in mind when considering leaving a child or pet in a car for even a minute or two. Not to mention, its unlawful to even leave a child in a car unattended.

To date, 10 children in surrounding states have died from heat stroke, due to neglect by their caretakers to remove them from a vehicle.  Tragedies also arise when children play or sneak in unlocked vehicles to perhaps play hide and seek or for some other reason, as was the tragedy involving Ava.  Check out this website for tips on avoiding heat stroke or death of children, Heat Safety for Children.

Seriously, though, take responsibility for your children! What kind of person drives off to go work, puts their kid in the car to drop off at daycare, and then forgets to drop off the kid at daycare and leaves them in a car for 8 hours? Or take the latest incident of church-goers who had a foster child still in car seat that nobody seemed to take out of the car because they thought somebody else had done so in the family?  What happens legally to these people? What is just punishment for stupidity in not realizing that heat kills...or do they claim short-term memory problems...I forgot or I failed to notice my child was in the carseat, and now my child is dead...what a harsh reality that would be.

Senseless tragedies.