Kids left in cars

Originally Posted by Nobbylad

Can you imagine the distress that would cause to the child who, as Ralph said, was quite content sat there waiting patiently. Some random dude comes over and bricks the window whilst you're waiting for your parent to come back from the shop with your sweets.

Weak..

Children are resilient and upsetting them a little can be better than the potential consequences. It'll upset their mum a whole lot more...

The word "brick" is used metaphorically.

So easily could have been one of those tragic but preventable deaths you read about in the tabloids, so Ralph i think it was the correct and responsible action to take and hats off to you mate.

[MisterTommyH]

Matt, remember we're not in Oz and these temperatures, although we think they are hot are actually not. I agree with your strategy for any length of time, but calling Nobbys post weak is a little harsh.

Over here there is a serious consideration that damage from flying glass etc would do more harm - I certainly would keep an eye on the situation like Ralph, or report it but wouldnt smash a window unless the child was in distress or passing out.

With regard to the not leaving your child while you go to pay for petrol? Why not? I don't understand this?

And with the god forbid a car crashes into them..... Your being there isn't going to change this...... You would probably be injured too...... The logic doesn't quite work for me.

True I don't have kids, but I have a lot of friends who do, and there are those that wrap up with cotton wool and those that don't. Those that don't (in my limited friendship groups) seem to have more capable, independent, developed children probably completely off point but I think there are unseen negatives in being too protective.

Originally Posted by MisterTommyH

Matt, remember we're not in Oz and these temperatures, although we think they are hot are actually not.

disagreee massively with this bit, dogs (police dogs for that matter) have been known to die in vehicles so what's to say the same couldn't happen to a child?

My mother used to leave me in the car for a few minutes at a time (usually to go in to grab dry cleaning or something). Once we had a car with all power windows she'd leave me the keys (so I could open them for more air or close them if anyone dodgy came past) and strict instructions to honk the horn like crazy if anything was wrong.

[MisterTommyH]

Originally Posted by tactcom7

disagreee massively with this bit, dogs (police dogs for that matter) have been known to die in vehicles so what's to say the same couldn't happen to a child?

Don't get me wrong I agree with you, but those dogs are there for periods of 30minutes - an hour or more.

If you come across this situation, unless the child is in obvious distress, you have no way of knowing if it's been 2 minutes or 5 or more. If you keep an eye on it and it goes on for a length of time then fine.... make a judgement call, but simply condemning the fact that a child is in the car, or gaining entry to a car when you first come across it for this reason is a massive over reaction.

Thats why what the OP did seems right to me. A measured reaction, taking note of the situation, but considering doing something more if the time became too long, or the child looked upset.

[yorkie_chris]

Keep your eye on the situation, ring the old bill if it seems a worryingly long time, break a window if you believe there is a serious risk to life.

http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Heat-ex.../Symptoms.aspx

[Nobbylad]

Originally Posted by yorkie_chris

Keep your eye on the situation, ring the old bill if it seems a worryingly long time, break a window if you believe there is a serious risk to life.

Exactly...whipping oneself up into a frenzy at the mere sight of a youngster left for a few minutes before smashing in the windows, only to find that the parent has gone to get change for the meter, might make you look like a bit of self-righteous twonk.

Originally Posted by littleoldman2

Times have changed. Mothers used to leave babies in prams outside shops, unthinkable now.

My older brother's mother forgot him outside Woolworths, she got all the way home before she realised, he was still there in his pram sound asleep.

When we were young my mum left my younger brother and I in the car, he was busy playing with the steering wheel and managed to put the steering lock on, she could not get it off. She did occasionally leave us in the car after that, but we were so banned from touching the steering wheel.

[gruntygiggles]

Originally Posted by MisterTommyH

Don't get me wrong I agree with you, but those dogs are there for periods of 30minutes - an hour or more.

If you come across this situation, unless the child is in obvious distress, you have no way of knowing if it's been 2 minutes or 5 or more. If you keep an eye on it and it goes on for a length of time then fine.... make a judgement call, but simply condemning the fact that a child is in the car, or gaining entry to a car when you first come across it for this reason is a massive over reaction.

Thats why what the OP did seems right to me. A measured reaction, taking note of the situation, but considering doing something more if the time became too long, or the child looked upset.

A dog can die in a hot car in less than 10 minutes. This is less time than it would take a child to die to suffer the same fate as humans have the ability to sweat...dogs don't. Dogs will pant to try and cool themselves, when they run out of water though, panting becomes useless to them and they literally cook inside the car. It would be the same as microwaving a dog in simple terms as it is their core temperature that makes their organs shut down. So...if you see a dog in a hot car, panting like mad...I would suggest calling around loudly for the owner, waiting a max of two minutes unless the dog looks to already be very distressed, then I would break in AND call the cops.

With a child/children, I would probably just wait around and if I saw that the child got distressed, would call the police or intervene. As far as time is concerned, if I had been waiting 15 minutes or more and no adults...I think I would make a call.

It's a fine line, but I would rather be called an interfering twonk than sit by and watch a child suffer.