(Radio Iowa) – When Iowa’s weather gets warmer, the risks rise of a child dying of heatstroke after accidentally being left in a vehicle by a parent or caregiver. It’s a rare tragedy in the state, but it still happens far too often, according to Laura Dunn, a highway safety specialist with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. “Unfortunately, seven children have died from heatstroke in Iowa since 1988,” Dunn says, “and the national per capita death rate is about 16.3, and Iowa falls kind of in the mid range at 11.8.” Iowa may not get as hot as Arizona during the summer, but the danger is still significant here. While the risk of hot car deaths is highest when temperatures are hottest, heatstroke can be fatal at any time of year — and at outside temperatures as low as 60 degrees.

“In just about 10 minutes, a car can heat up by about 20 degrees, and that keeps increasing exponentially as time goes on,” Dunn says. “Cracking a window, parking in the shade, it really does very little to help. It’s kind of like what you would call a greenhouse effect.” An average of 37 children die in hot vehicles nationwide every year, and during the summer months, Dunn says it’s roughly two each week.

“We’re launching a new campaign with the Ad Council to remind parents when they park to ‘Stop. Look. Lock.’ and with that, we are hoping to prevent one of the primary ways that hot car deaths happen,” she says, “from a parent or caregiver forgetting their child in a vehicle.” Forgotten children make up about 53-percent of hot car deaths, while some 26-percent of the deaths are from a child getting into a car but they can’t get out. About 20-percent of hot car deaths come from a parent intentionally leaving a child in the car without realizing how quickly it will heat up. Studies show a child’s body temperature rises three-to-five times faster than an adult’s, and when a child’s body temperature reaches 107 degrees or higher, it can lead to death.

“When you park, look in the backseat before locking and leaving the car,” Dunn says. “When you’re driving with your child, make sure that your child’s been dropped off where they’re supposed to be at school or childcare. Keep an item in your vehicle, like a child’s toy, and put that toy up front with you when your child’s in the car seat.” She also suggests leaving something you need during the day — like your phone, a purse or a briefcase — in the back seat with the child.

The NHTSA says heatstroke from hot cars is the leading cause of non-crash, vehicle-related death for kids 14 and younger.