Hot outside? It's even hotter in your car. Can you break into a car to save a child or pet?

Yahoo

6 hours ago

High temperatures are coming to Louisville and the Bluegrass State. It's important to remember that if it's hot outside, it's even hotter in your vehicle.
On hot summer days, always double check your backseat for passengers (whether that be pets or children), drink lots of water and be sure to watch for signs of heat cramps, exhaustion or stroke.
It is never safe to leave a child, disabled person or pet locked in a car. For more information about how cars can heat up quickly when left in the sun, check the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration website in both English and Spanish.
While this applies all year round, it is especially important on warm or hot summer days.
Every year, hundreds of pets die from heat exhaustion because they are left in parked vehicles, according to the American Veterinarian Medical Association. The temperature inside a vehicle can rise almost 20° F in just 10 minutes, and almost 30° F in 20 minutes.
The longer a pet, child or person is inside a car turned off in the heat, the higher it goes.
At one hour, your vehicle's inside temperature can be more than 40 degrees higher than the outside temperature. Even on a 70-degree day, that's 110 degrees inside a car.
Kentucky has a law that provides immunity from liability if a person damages a vehicle to remove a minor. But it does have some conditions:
You must have "a reasonable, good faith belief ... that entry into the vehicle is necessary because a minor is in imminent danger."
You must have contacted an emergency service before entering the vehicle.
You should use no more force than necessary to remove the minor.
After removing the minor from the car, you should move them to a safe location and remain with them until first responders arrive, unless emergency conditions make it necessary to leave the scene.
The law says that if you do have to leave the scene, you should leave a written notice with your contact information, the reason entry was made into the vehicle, the minor's location and a notice that you have contacted authorities.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) recommends that bystanders not wait more than a few minutes for a driver to return to the car and to first assess if the child is responsive or unresponsive.
You should call 911 right away and get the child out of the car if they appear to be unresponsive. Be sure to check for unlocked doors first. Once the child is freed from the vehicle, they may need to be sprayed or toweled off with cool water until emergency responders arrive.
If a child is responsive, the NHTSA recommends staying with the child outside of the vehicle until law enforcement and or first responders arrive to locate the driver.
Kentucky doesn't have a law giving immunity from liability to rescue a pet from a hot car.
If you see an animal left in a car during hot temperatures, Kentucky Humane Society suggests trying to find the owner and calling 911 immediately.
In Louisville, there is an ordinance that allows a first responder to break into a vehicle if certain conditions are met, including making "reasonable effort" to locate the person responsible for the vehicle. It requires considering factors such as weather conditions, whether the vehicle is in the shade, and whether the pet is in distress.
(This story has been updated to add more information.)
This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Does Kentucky law allow you to break into a car to save a child or a dog?