Two young children survive being left in hot car outside Dallas store

Two young children are back home after being left in a hot car in Dallas on Monday.

Dallas police and Dallas Fire-Rescue were both called out to the Fiesta grocery store on Garland Road about 6 p.m. The temperature at the time was 95 degrees and the heat index was 103.

Maria Barrera said she was walking out of Fiesta when she noticed firefighters and police surrounding another car near hers.

“The back window was about halfway and the little kids were sticking their heads out waving, and so the police went up to the window and talked to the kids,” Barrera said.

Barrera said it looked to be two little boys no older than 4 or 5-years-old.

“You can't leave your kids in the car. You just can't. It's not right,” Barrera said.

The children were in the car several minutes when a woman who appeared to be the mother came out of the store. Dallas Fire-Rescue said no one was taken to the hospital and police did not issue a citation.

Dr. Jo-Ann Nesiama, who works in pediatric emergency at UT-Southwestern/Children's Health, says children should never be left in a hot car -- even with a window down.

“You think you can walk into the store really quickly, it will take you less than two minutes to pick up something and come out, but it takes just as long for the kid, who's actively talking, walking, laughing with you, for you to come out and the child is unconscious,” Nesiama said.

The pediatrician says she sees at least one child suffering from heat issues each week during the summer.

“From 5-10 minutes, now you start getting to a point of they're not as active as they usually are. Their body starts to shut down and they're not even really sweating at all. And then you progress from there to organ failure,” Nesiama said.

Nesiama said temperatures inside vehicles can climb from 95 degrees to 115 degrees in a matter of minutes during the summer.