The Sweetwater County Sheriff's Department is warning people about the dangers of leaving kids in parked cars, especially in hot weather.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says heat stroke is the leading cause of non-crash, vehicle related deaths among children under the age of 14.

Studies show that a child's body temperature rises three to five times faster than an adult.

Sheriff Mike Lowell says that even with the windows down, the temperature inside a parked car on a hot day can get over 120 degrees in just a few minutes. He says heat stroke occurs when body temperature reaches 104 degrees and 107 degrees is considered lethal.

The department says a child should never, under any circumstances, be left in a parked car even for a minute, even with the windows rolled down and the air conditioning running.

The sheriff is also asking people who see kids in parked cars not to be afraid to report the situation.

He added, "Law enforcement prefers responding to false alarms and close calls to tragedies every time."

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