Rising Heat In UAE: Parents Warned Against Leaving Children Alone In Vehicles

As temperatures in the UAE soar before even the start of peak summer heat, authorities are warning residents of taking precautions, from preventing gas accidents to leaving children unattended inside cars.

In a recent advisory, Abu Dhabi Police warned motorists, especially those with families, against leaving children alone in the car , especially when the temperatures outside are high.

Such instances may take place when parents might forget a child behind in the car or leave them while going shopping or for some other reason.

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If the car is locked or the child is too young to be able to get out on their own, leaving them inside could lead to death or suffocation due to oxygen depletion and rising temperatures inside the car.

The UAE hit the highest temperature in the country on Saturday (May 24), reaching a scorching 51.6°C at 1.45pm, according to the National Center of Meteorology (NCM). This extreme heat marks one of the highest temperatures recorded so far this season, signalling an early start to the intense summer heat that typically grips the country in the coming months.

Leaving children unattended could also lead to an accident if the child tampers with the gear shift. Such situations may also make it easy for criminals to steal from the vehicle or commit other crimes.

The authority warned that endangering a child's life is a crime punishable by law and emphasised that anyone proven to have been negligent in such cases will be referred to the judicial authorities for legal action.

In the UAE, such negligence is punishable with a hefty fine and even imprisonment under Article 35 of the Wadeema Law. According to the law, the offence is punishable by imprisonment and/or a fine of up to Dh5,000 based on the“judge's evaluation on a case-by-case basis”. In some instances, endangerment of the life and safety of people may be punishable by imprisonment/or a fine of up to Dh10,000.

Last year, a seven-year-old child tragically lost his life after being left inside a locked car for several hours after his unlicensed driver forgot him inside the car while dropping students off to school in the morning.

Meanwhile, in 2022, police rescued a two-year-old toddler , who got stuck in the car after his mother left him for a few minutes to buy some groceries. The mother had left the keys inside the car and upon arrival, found that she wasn't able to open the doors as they had locked by themselves. She then reached out to the authority for help.

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