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'Look before you lock' first responders remind of hot car dangers

The temperature inside a car can rise 19 degrees in just 10 minutes.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — We are in the thick of Florida summer and first responders in St. Pete are reminding folks about the dangers of hot cars and the risk they pose to kids.

St. Pete Fire Rescue is holding a demonstration Friday with local pediatricians to remind people to “look before you lock,” hopefully preventing a tragic death.

“We know that anything can happen to anybody. Time gets away from people. And we want to make sure that that time doesn't get away from you,” says Lt. Garth Swingle of St. Pete Fire Rescue.

It’s an important reminder as Florida weather heats up, according to the National Safety Council these tragedies continue to happen, 38 children die every year from being left in a hot car.

“We don't want that to happen to you. We want you to look before you lock,” added Swingle.

That’s because every minute counts. A child's body heats up 3-5 times faster than adult and car temperatures can rise 19 degrees in 10 minutes.

RELATED: How does a parent forget a child in a car? A neuroscientist explains

Say it’s a 90-degree day, in just 10 minutes it will be 109 degrees inside a car, after 30 minutes it soars above 120 degrees, more than enough to cause pediatric heatstroke.

If you see a child inside a locked car, Swingle says you should act, “If you're out there, and you see this happening, you see where you can actually possibly save a life. You're protected under law to respond.”

What does a response look like? Either open the door and take the kid out of the car and call 911. If the door is locked, grab a pointed object like a rock and go to the opposite window of where the kid is and hit the corner of the window to break it in.

RELATED: Preventing hot car deaths: Rear seat alarms to be installed in new vehicles by 2025

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