Wake County Human Services holds hot car demonstration

WAKE COUNTY, NC (WTVD) -- On Thursday, Wake County Human Services held a two-hour-long demonstration outside their Sunnybrook Road office in Raleigh to stress the importance of not leaving children unattended in a hot car.

A Chevy Equinox that displayed the difference between the outside and inside of the vehicle was parked in front of the building.

Staffers also made s'mores by using the car's dashboard to "bake" the snack.

According to NoHeatStroke.org, over 700 children have died from being left alone in a car since 1998. Furthermore, 54 percent of these cases involve the child or children being forgotten. Statistics show that 17 percent of kids who died were left in the vehicle intentionally.

"People think they can leave their child in the car for just a few minutes, and that's never okay," said Suzanne Luyoden, an employee with the county's human services department. "Even when the window cracked on a 70-degree day, we've had fatalities in vehicles."

In early June, a Raleigh infant died after being left alone in a car for four hours. "It hits very close to home when it happens in your own community," Luyoden added. "What we do with that, what we beg the public to do, everybody to do, is take part in this initiative. If you see a child in an unattended vehicle, please call 911. Stay with the vehicle and call 911."

Luyoden said "ACT" is an acronym the department uses to educate parents, guardians, and caregivers.

The acronym stands for: Avoid heatstrokes, Create reminders, and Take action.

The department urges anyone who sees an unattended child left in a car to stay with a vehicle and call 911.