SOUTHINGTON, Conn. — With the recent hot weather spell, it's a good reminder to keep pets and children out of hot cars, and for anyone who may witness anyone left in a hot car in distress, a Good Samaritan Law can help save their life.
It only takes about 15 minutes if it's 95 degrees outside for a car to reach 115 degrees and 30 minutes to reach 130 degrees. When it's even hotter than that outside, those temperatures keep going up.
"We do see children or pets being left in vehicles unattended unfortunately here in Connecticut," said Pedro Muniz, Trooper First Class with the Connecticut State Police.
It's a tragedy that can be prevented.
Over in Southington, police have already responded to nine calls for animal endangerment this summer and three arrests have been made.
Trooper Muniz said it's not just pets that are sometimes left in hot cars, it's kids too, and it can result in a felony charge for either a pet or a child left unattended.
"You want to get emergency services there and medical services there as soon as possible," said Muniz.
The state of Connecticut has a Good Samaritan Law in place that legally protects someone who has to break a window to save either a child or an animal from a hot car. Under the law, the child or pet has to be medically in distress.
For dogs, they show signs like panting or drooling. In kids, they can look sleepy.
"They look like they’re dozing off or they look really hot or red," said Trooper Muniz.
He said in order to not forget a quiet baby in the back seat, put something near the child so they're not forgotten inside for even a minute.
"Put the shoe in the backseat or your key fob in the backseat, that way because oftentimes you don’t need it to turn on the car it just needs to be in the vehicle so you won’t forget it to lock the car," said Trooper Muniz.
Dogs and children both respond differently to the heat than adults; their bodies can't stand those hot temperatures.
It can only take minutes for either a dog or a child to be tragically killed.
State police are reminding the public to stay vigilant and if you see something, call 9-1-1.
Lindsey Kane is a reporter at FOX61 News. She can be reached at Lkane@fox61.com. Follow her on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
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