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TRUNC and Ford Motor Company Unite to Keep Kids Out of Car Trunks

7 May 1999

TRUNC and Ford Motor Company Unite to Keep Kids Out of Car Trunks: Parents Must Teach Kids About Danger of Trunk Entrapment

    SAN FRANCISCO, May 6 -- During National SAFE KIDS Week, the
Trunk Releases Urgently Needed Coalition and Ford Motor Company are urging
parents to teach their children about the dangers of climbing into the trunk
of a car. Last summer, 11 children died after accidentally locking themselves
inside the trunk of a car. The advocacy group and the automaker both want to
ensure this type of preventable tragedy does not occur again this summer.
    T.R.U.N.C. founder, Janette Fennell says, "The summer's heat coupled with
the trunk of a car adds up to a deadly combination. The temperature inside a
car trunk can reach 160 degrees in a very short time. In minutes, a small
child can die of hyperthermia and asphyxiation. The same goes for adults."
    Over 1000 people have been victims of car trunk entrapment, 25 percent of
whom have died. Many adults also have died after being intentionally locked
inside the trunk when they either were abducted or were the victims of
carjackings. Ford has introduced a standard emergency trunk release mechanism
which the Company will debut this fall on its 2000 Ford Taurus.
    Ford's Vice President of Large and Luxury Vehicles, Ken Kohrs explains,
"We recognized a need, and so we developed an emergency trunk release system
and made it standard. Now, children and adults will have a way out of the
trunk if they find themselves locked inside."
    Like Fennell, Kohrs agrees that parents should teach their children not to
play inside a car or a trunk. Both urge parents to learn how to protect
themselves and their children from a trunk entrapment incident. These tragic
types of death can be avoided by following some simple guidelines.

    AWARENESS AND PLANNING ARE KEY
    * Children should not be left alone or unsupervised inside or around a
car, even for a few minutes.
    * Never leave car keys or electronic remote key opener where children can
get to them.
    * Keep the car and trunk locked at all times so no child can gain
unsupervised access inside.
    * Never underestimate your children's capabilities. If there is a way
inside a car or trunk, children will find it.
    * Teach your children about the dangers of a car and especially the trunk
of a car. Make sure your child understands that a car is not a toy, and that
they are NOT allowed to play inside a trunk.
    * Arm your children with the facts. Tell them they could die from being
locked inside the trunk because of the high temperatures and lack of fresh
air.
    * Install a trunk release in the interior of your car trunk. Directions
for installing one yourself are available on the T.R.U.N.C. Web site at
http://www.netkitchen.com/trunc. You also can have an interior trunk release
installed at an automobile dealership or at a car stereo or car alarm
installer.
    * At minimum, keep a crowbar, pliers, wrench, flashlight, whistle, and/or
a screwdriver in the trunk of your car to pry open the latch and to bang for
help.
    Ford Motor Company will install an emergency trunk release on all of their
Ford, Lincoln and Mercury passenger vehicles with trunks, for the 2000 model
year. Until these cars are available and after, be sure to educate yourself
and your children about this important safety issue.
    *T.R.U.N.C. is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to pursue a
greater level of public safety by ensuring that car trunks are escapable.
Visit the T.R.U.N.C. Web site at http://www.netkitchen.com/trunc. T.R.U.N.C.
is a project of the Trauma Foundation.