The Weather Channel Is Tackling Infant Hot Car Deaths With This Ingenious Graphic

Like the United Air Lines saga just demonstrated, babies aren’t equipped to handle the heat. One burning issue that continues to be a problem, in particular? Hot car deaths—an average of 37 each year. So The Weather Channel is pledging to do something about it.

“After the three deaths just over this past weekend, managers and meteorologists got together and asked ourselves, ‘what more do we have to do?’ Nora Zimmett, Senior Vice President of Live Programming at The Weather Channel, tells The Bump via email. “This is my third summer at The Weather Channel, and it amazes me that every summer we are still seeing these tragic deaths.”

The team came up with a plan: Everyday, they’ll run a graphic called the Scorching Car Scale indicating how the outside temperature influences the interior temperature of a parked car—and how quickly that temperature rises. By showcasing how extreme that change is—it can rise nearly 20 degrees Fahrenheit in 10 minutes—they hope to emphasize that leaving baby alone for even a few minutes while you run an errand is a dangerous idea in the summer.

“We’ve talked about the dangers of heat in the past, but this graphic is a tangible way for people to understand just how drastically heat increases in a car,” Zimmett says.

She adds that their promotional plan is an aggressive one.

“We plan on airing the Scorching Car Scale multiple times a day. We will specifically highlight parts of the country that are forecast to experience high temperatures and even popular tourists destinations. We’ll also promote on our social pages and our community website, WeLoveWeather.tv.”

While The Weather Channel says many hot car deaths occur because parents are simply unaware that leaving a child inside a car—even at mild temperatures with the window cracked—can have quick and drastic effects, there’s a secondary problem at work too: parents forgetting baby is in the back seat.

Several companies are stepping up to combat that absent-mindedness that can strike any frazzled and busy parent. Most recently, we’ve seen a phone-sized Bluetooth device that reminds you baby’s still in the car seat. And Evenflo has built that technology right into a car seat—the Evenflo Advanced SensorSafe Titan 65.

Please note: The Bump and the materials and information it contains are not intended to, and do not constitute, medical or other health advice or diagnosis and should not be used as such. You should always consult with a qualified physician or health professional about your specific circumstances.