Emergency services are again warning Wyndham parents that there is no excuse for leaving children in a car.
Ambulance Victoria data released last week reveals that Wyndham paramedics received 31 callouts between September and the end of January to help people locked in cars.
It’s estimated two-thirds of the callouts were for children.
Eighteen calls were for cars parked in Hoppers Crossing, Tarneit or Truganina, while 13 calls were for cars in Werribee or Point Cook. Postcode 3029 had the highest number of callouts in the state.
Werribee CFA captain Michael Wells said leaving children unattended in a car was an ‘‘act of stupidity”.
“There are times when we get called out because a parent has accidentally locked their keys in the car, but most of the time it’s a deliberate act. [But] there is never an excuse for leaving your child in a car.”
Penalties for leaving a child unattended in a car range from a $2165 fine to three months in prison.
Mr Wells said the brigade was regularly called to help children locked in cars in shopping centre and supermarket car parks or on Watton and Synnot streets. He said the calls were a drain on emergency services with two to three fire trucks, police and paramedics dispatched every time a call was received.
“If there is a house fire or a serious accident, we can’t attend because resources are tied up through people’s stupidity.”
Ambulance Victoria group manager Brett Drummond said cars could heat up quickly, endangering children’s lives.
“Tests by Ambulance Victoria found that even on a 29-degree day, the inside of a car can reach 44 degrees within 10 minutes and hit 60 degrees within 20 minutes,” he said.
