TROY, Ala. (TROJANVISION) — It’s summertime, which means temperatures are getting higher and so are the dangers associated with vehicles.

When it gets hot outside, it gets even hotter in your car. With the summer season here it’s important for people to be aware of how hot their car can get.

“It starts getting dangerous as early as March when the temperatures are still in the in the low 70s,” said Troy Fire Department Battalion Chief Josh Hamm. “It could be 30 plus degrees higher inside a vehicle, even in March.

The heat inside your car can be dangerous for adults, pets and, especially, children. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), in 2022 alone, 33 children died from heat stroke while in vehicles. Hamm says in order to protect children, people need to be more cautious.

“If people would just check the back seat before they ever get out of their vehicle or use the reminders that are programmed into automobiles,” Hamm said. “Set reminders in your phone. There’s all kinds of little tricks. You can leave things in the seat to remind you to look.”

Unfortunately, there are other ways children can get stuck in a hot car.

“If you leave a vehicle unlocked and unattended, a child can get into it and and no one would know,” Hamm explained.

For more information about hot car safety, visit the NHTSA’s website.