A 20-month-old child was hospitalized earlier this month for heat exposure after being left in a car outside a North Laurel home for three hours.
The child was forgotten by a family member on June 14 and discovered, police said, when a passerby saw the child at about 1:45 p.m. and alerted the family.
Howard County Health Officer Peter Beilenson said the family is lucky the mistake did not have greater consequences.
"If it was 90 degrees and sunny, the chances are that child would have been dead." Beilenson said. "They are extremely lucky that something worse did not happen."
The high temperature that day was 78 degrees. But Beilenson cautioned that "even if it was 78 degrees and there was direct sun in the heat of the day, it could have been deadly."
The incident sparked concern among county officials, prompting the county health, police and fire and rescue services departments to hold a news conference Wednesday, June 22 at the county's Ellicott City government campus.
"Two years ago, less than a mile from here, a mother unintentionally left a child in the car," Police Chief William McMahon said at the news conference. That child, left in a car for about nine hours on June 25, 2009, died.
The child was a victim of the "unintended consequences" of such a mistake, McMahon said.
Dr. Kevin Seaman, medical director for the fire department, said parents need to be vigilant when driving their children in the summer. He suggested leaving a necessary item, such as a purse or cell phone, next to the child to limit forgetfulness.
"We all lead very busy lives, so this could really happen to anyone," he said.
According to police records requested by the Howard County Times, this year police have received 50 calls for service concerning people and pets locked in vehicles. That number includes accidental lock-ins where police were called immediately. Twenty-two calls were received after May 1, when the weather started getting warmer.
In 2010, police received a total of 153 calls about lock-ins. In 2009, that number was 107 and in 2008, it was 124.
Not all cases are mistakes, McMahon said.
Many incidents of children being left inside cars occur when parents are in a rush.
"They intentionally leave them, because they're just running into the store for a minute," he said.
Beilenson said even "just a minute is too long."
In the last year, more than 50 children in the United States have died from being left unattended inside a vehicle, Beilenson said.
When police catch adults intentionally leaving children under the age of eight in a car alone, they issue a citation. In some cases, criminal charges are brought against the adult, McMahon said.
Police are more discerning when a child is left in a car accidentally. McMahon called the decision to criminally charge accidental cases "very challenging." In the case from 2009, no charges were filed.
Police are still investigating the North Laurel incident.
McMahon stressed that no vulnerable individuals — children, the elderly, the disabled — and even animals should be left inside a car unattended.
At the news conference, police placed a thermometer inside a car. After 12 minutes, the temperature inside the car was 112 degrees.
"That's almost 100 percent lethal," Beilenson said.