With things cooling down after last week’s heat in the Raccoon Valley Radio listening area, there’s one safety reminder that should still be heeded.

Guthrie County Health Services Director Jotham Arber says that staying in a vehicle in the summer heat can be extremely dangerous, but is even more so for the young and elderly. He tells Raccoon Valley Radio why these populations face a greater risk in the heat.

“Younger children and adults that are aging, their bodies aren’t as good at getting rid of heat. So if we leave a child in a car, especially when that sun is beaming down, it doesn’t take very long for the car to heat up to a point that that child will now develop heat stroke, (or) heat exhaustion.”

Arber adds that darker vehicles can heat up faster in the summer sun than lighter colored ones, as they absorb the heat much easier. He adds that this can cause the vehicle to become like an oven, and quickly gain an internal temperature in the 100’s of degrees, especially if there is no way to get air moving inside the vehicle. Arber explains that the hot temperatures inside vehicles can also affect pets in the same way. He asks that everyone please remember to always check and make sure that no one is being left in the vehicle when there are high temperatures.