A heartfelt thank-you has been extended to emergency services and the RAC after a nerve-wracking incident at the Ranch Sorting National Championships event in Chittering over the weekend of 7-8 December.
Mother-of-two Kirby McKnight shared her gratitude for the quick response and professional care she received after her 11-month-old daughter Elora was accidentally locked inside her car.
“I was so grateful for the quick response and speedy recovery,” Kirby said. “I was just blown away by the professionalism and reassurance from everyone involved, including the first aid officer on standby at the event, who stayed back an extra hour — after spending all day in the heat — to support me.”
The incident occurred when Kirby’s young son, Tom, accidentally locked the doors of their BMW while playing with the buttons inside. Within 30 minutes of raising the alarm, the local fire brigade, police, and RAC attended the scene and safely rescued the baby.
“The fire brigade quickly assessed the situation, the police ensured our safety, and the RAC expertly unlocked the vehicle. Their swift and professional response was truly commendable,” Kirby said. “I cannot express how relieved I was when my baby was safely rescued.”
The RAC rescues more than 400 WA children accidentally locked in cars each year. This is a community service and an RAC Membership is not required. Here are their tips to prevent happening:
- Keep your keys on you. Some cars have an auto-lock function, so ensure you have your keys on you at all times when you’re out of the vehicle. Avoid throwing them on to the car seat, placing them down inside the boot or popping them on the dashboard while you load up groceries, unpack the pram or pull out the baby bag.
- Don’t give your child car keys to play with, and keep keys out of reach. It can be tempting to give young children something shiny to play with while you load groceries into the boot, but it can result in them accidentally locking themselves in the car. Keep a toy in the backseat which you can give them instead while you keep your keys on you.
- Invest in a coil-band key chain. If you don’t happen to be wearing clothing with pockets, keeping your keys on you can be hard. Invest in a stretchable coil-band key chain so you can pop the band over your wrist as soon as you take the keys out of the ignition, and have them on you at all times.
- Put a physical reminder on your dash. Place an item somewhere in the driver’s line of sight to remind you to grab your keys on your way out of the car. That way, you’ll help avoid accidentally leaving them sitting in the ignition.
- Have a ‘one door open’ rule. Make a habit of keeping at least one car door open – or at least a little bit ajar – the whole time you have a child in the car. Then once you’ve removed your child from the car, shut all the doors again.
What to do if your child is locked in a car: - Call for immediate help. Dial 000 if the child is in distress or the temperature is high.
- Inform the operator it’s an emergency involving a child locked in a car. Fire and emergency services (or police) will prioritise such cases.
- Contact a Roadside Assistance Service. If the child is not in immediate danger, call a service like RAC WA (13 11 11) for car unlocking assistance.
- Stay with your car. Ask others to help rather than leaving. If you want to try to break into the car yourself while you are waiting for help to arrive, don’t leave your car to find something to break in with – if it’s possible, ask a passer-by to find something for you instead.
- Make a call before trying to get in to the car yourself. Time is critical, so it is important to first make a call to either emergency services or RAC so help can be deployed immediately.
