Just this week on June 21, Marlo’s Magnificent Early Learning Center in Jonesboro, Georgia made a mistake that ended in tragedy for a 2 year old girl. The center’s van had just returned from a field trip and had unloaded the children but overlooked Jasmin Green, who may have been sleeping, locking her in the van. They did not notice that she was missing for over 2 hours. Outside temperatures that day were in the mid 90’s. When they finally noticed she was missing, they began searching for her and found her in the van. She was non-responsive and was transported to a local hospital where she died. Marlo’s child care center has been cited in the past for failing to do proper vehicle checks at the completion of field trips.
Each year in the U.S. about 40 children die from hyperthermia after being left in hot cars during the summer. Most of these tragic cases occurred because children were forgotten about. But in about 25% of these cases a parent or caregiver knowingly left the child in the vehicle because they were sleeping and they did not want to disturb them.
Leaving Children In Hot Cars: About 40 Deaths Annually
Researchers have found that when the outside air temperature is 90 degrees, the air inside a car can rise to 133 degrees within an hour. Children are especially susceptible to hot temperatures because their small bodies are not as efficient at regulating their temperature and they also get hot at a faster rate than an adult.
Be safe. When traveling in a car with children:
- Take role.
- Have each child be assigned a buddy, if they are a little older.
- Make it habit to do a walk-through of any larger vehicle before exiting.
- Raise awareness of the dangers of leaving children in vehicles. It could result in death.
- If you see a child alone in a vehicle, take responsibility and get help from authorities.
Contact A Wrongful Death Attorney – Kennesaw & Marietta
When an adult has failed to protect a child in their care and it has resulted in death or serious injury, they can be held legally liable. If you have experienced a tragedy like this due to someone else’s negligence you should meet with a Marietta & Kennesaw wrongful death attorney like Andrew Jones. He can advise you of your legal rights and help you recover any damages you may be entitled to.
Categories: Georgia Laws, Premises Liability, Wrongful Death
