Twins’ Death in Hot Car Prompts PETA Proposal to Protect Children and Animals

Group Asks Mayor to Join Efforts to Prevent Future Tragedies

For Immediate Release:
August 9, 2016

Contact:
Sophia Charchuk 202-483-7382

In the wake of Thursday’s tragic incident in which twin 15-month-old girls died after being left inside a hot SUV in Carrollton, PETA rushed a letter to Mayor Walt Hollingsworth this morning offering signs to post around the city that read, “Warning: Children and Dogs Die in Hot Cars.” The posters aim to alert passersby that it takes only a few minutes for children and animals to die of heatstroke inside a car—even in moderate weather, in the shade, or with the windows slightly open—as interior temperatures can rise rapidly.

“PETA’s signs provide an urgent reminder that no child or animal should ever be left unattended in a hot car for any amount of time because tragedy can happen in minutes,” says PETA President Ingrid Newkirk. “With dozens of children’s and dogs’ lives already lost this summer, we must vigilantly protect the most vulnerable among us from more heartbreaking, fatal mistakes.”

PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to abuse in any way”—notes that just this summer, at least 26 children and 35 dogs have reportedly died after being left in hot cars. On a 78-degree day, the temperature inside a parked car can soar to well over 100 degrees in just minutes, even with the windows slightly open. When a child is left in a hot vehicle, his or her body temperature can increase three to five times faster than an adult’s, and because dogs can cool themselves only by panting, they can suffer from heatstroke in just 15 minutes, resulting in brain damage or death.

Since 1998, there have been nearly 700 documented cases in which children died in hot cars, and PETA receives numerous reports each year about panicked animals who have suffered and died in agony inside vehicles during warm weather.

PETA’s letter to Mayor Hollingsworth is available upon request. For more information, please visit PETA.org.