Toddler Dies In Hot Florida Car As Heat Dome Sweeps Nation

Summary

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Episode Overview

Title: Toddler Dies In Hot Florida Car As Heat Dome Sweeps Nation
Date: July 1, 2026
Hosts: Amy Robach & T.J. Holmes
Theme:
This somber episode centers on the tragic death of an 18-month-old boy who was left in a hot car outside a daycare in Florida during a severe heatwave. Amy and TJ break down how such tragedies happen, discuss the emotional, legal, and societal ramifications, and share staggering statistics and practical prevention tips. They also explore if criminal charges truly serve as deterrents or instead perpetuate misunderstandings about these accidents.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

The Tragic Incident in Florida

• [02:06] Rob outlines the story: A Florida father, believing he’d dropped his toddler off at daycare, later discovers, upon returning for pickup, that his son had remained in the car all day.
• [02:46] Amy Robach emphasizes the gutting nature of this tragedy: the father's tragic mistake and the role a shift in routine may have played.
• [04:00] Time details: Incident occurred on a Monday evening around 5:45pm, outside World of Discovery Academy daycare.
• [04:20] Daycare was not alerted as parents had mentioned their older child’s absence, leading staff to assume the younger was absent too.

Emotional Aftermath & Parental Guilt

• [05:52] Rob, referencing daycare owner, paints the scene as the father opens the car and realizes the unimaginable: “He made a mistake, Robes, and he got so caught up in something else...he did not realize all day that he had made a mistake.”
• [06:42] Amy empathizes: “That’s something that you obviously will never get over, that you’ll never not remember and think about probably every minute of every day.”
• [06:55] Poignant recollection of the father’s distress: “He was screaming, oh my God, oh my God, oh my God.”

Legal Ramifications: Charges and Deterrents

• [08:29] Rob: “Do they factor that into deciding whether or not to charge this man with a crime?...chances are he’s going to be charged.”
• [08:53] Amy, citing statistics:
  • 58% of cases result in prosecutors seeking charges when hot car deaths occur.
  • 32% lead to some form of conviction.
• [10:23] The daycare owner, describing the family as loving, expressed disbelief and empathy, highlighting the innocent nature of the error.

How These Tragedies Happen

• [11:27] Rob: “On average 40 deaths a year, hot car deaths—86% of them are younger than age three.”
• [12:09] Amy discusses the challenge of rear-facing car seats: “You don’t see your child. That’s why...I always felt uncomfortable with the back facing seat.”
• [13:24] Rob: “Overwhelmingly...these [deaths] happen just like this—when somebody is dropping a kid off at daycare. 45% include that circumstance.”

Should Parents Be Charged?

• [20:28] Amy shares a compelling point from the advocacy group Kids and Cars:
  • “Criminalizing unintentional acts is not a deterrent for future tragedies. In fact, it serves to further enforce the idea most parents believe this could never happen to me.”
  • [21:27] Rob expands: “By actually charging people with this, you’re criminalizing something...these aren’t monsters, all these parents...he’s a parent just like anybody else who cares about their kid. And he made a mistake.”
• [23:00] Amy: “All of us have been on autopilot...it doesn’t take much for our brains to shut down, and that is almost certainly what happens in all of these cases.”
• [23:17] Rob, citing science, notes that routine and autopilot "shuts down your memory."

Practical Prevention and Safety Measures

• [25:16] Amy recommends:
  • Always check the back seat—make it a habit.
  • Place a toy or important item in front as a reminder.
  • Develop a daycare policy where parents are always alerted if a child doesn’t arrive, regardless of prior notice.
• [25:35] Discussion about car alert systems.
  • Technology exists in some newer vehicles—a prompt saying “check the back seat”—but not all cars have it. There is a push for regulation.
• [27:36] Rob reports the 2021 rule requiring all new cars have such systems was to be finalized in 2023, but, as of 2026, has still not been implemented. Senator Blumenthal is pushing for it.
  • [29:19] Rob: “He drove to work, he opened his car door, and there would have been a bing, bing, bing...check the back seat.”
  • Amy: “Can you imagine that moment if you realized you were about to do something and you were stopped because of technology?”

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• [06:42] Amy Robach (on the father’s burden):
  “You’ve lost your child...but second, because of a distracted thought, because of a mistake you made, your child is dead. You are the reason why. And you would think I would think that that is punishment enough, but that is not typically what we see happen in this country.”
• [12:09] Amy Robach (on rear-facing seats):
  “You don’t see your child. That’s why...I always felt uncomfortable with the back facing seat...I'm sure statistically speaking it still saves way more babies’ lives…but when the seat is turned around, you don’t remember.”
• [20:28] Amy Robach (quoting Kids and Cars advocacy group):
  “Criminalizing unintentional acts is not a deterrent for future tragedies. In fact, it serves to further enforce the idea most parents believe this could never happen to me.”
• [21:27] Rob:
  “By actually charging people with this, you’re criminalizing something that is now turning everybody into...These aren’t monsters, all these parents. Especially this guy. He’s a parent just like anybody else who cares about their kid.”
• [23:36] Amy Robach:
  “How many times have each of us walked into a room and go, why did I come in here?...It’s the same mindset.”
• [26:44] Amy Robach:
  “The biggest thing you can do is not to tell yourself it can’t happen to you. You have to believe it’s possible.”
• [29:31] Rob:
  “He drove to work, he opened his car door, and there would have been a bing, bing, bing, bing, bing, bing. Check the back seat.”

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Important Segment Timestamps

• [02:06] — Incident summary begins
• [05:52] — Description of the moment the father discovers the child
• [08:53] — Legal statistics on prosecution and conviction rates
• [11:27] — Discussion of age of victims and frequency of hot car deaths
• [13:24] — Statistics about daycare drop-off connection
• [20:28] — Key argument against criminalizing unintentional acts
• [25:16] — Prevention tactics; daycare communication and vehicle alerts
• [27:36] — Policy push and the lack of required car alarms
• [29:19] — Reminder about technology’s potential to save lives

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Prevention & Takeaways

• Routine changes, autopilot thinking, and rear-facing car seats greatly increase risk—self-awareness and systemic checks are crucial.
• Alerts from vehicles, daycare communication, and simple habits (like placing a reminder in the front seat) are practical, life-saving measures.
• Empathy and understanding, rather than criminalization, may be more effective in fostering prevention.
• As heatwaves become more common, the risk rises—advocacy for legislative action and technological adoption is urgent.
• Above all: Always check the back seat, no matter what.

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Closing Note

The hosts remind listeners this tragedy could happen to anyone, urging vigilance and understanding:
[30:11] Amy Robach:
“Yes. Always a good reminder. And we always appreciate you listening to us. Everyone, I’m Amy Robach alongside TJ Holmes.”

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Transcript

[Amy Robach]

This is an iHeart podcast. Guaranteed Human. I turned off news altogether.

[TJ Holmes]

I hate to say it, but I don't trust much of anything.

[Rob]

It's the rage bait.

[Amy Robach]

It feels like it's trying to divide people.

[TJ Holmes]

We got clear facts. Maybe we could calm down a little. NBC News brings you clear reporting. Let's meet at the Facts. Let's move forward from there. NBC News reporting for America. All new drinks are now at McDonald's with refreshers like the Strawberry Watermelon Refresher and the Mango Pineapple Refresher with popping Boba. To crafted sodas like the Sprite Berry Blast with berry flavors and cold foam. Who knew ice cold drinks could be so fire six? All new drinks are here now at McDonald's.

[Rob]

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[Hoda Kotb]

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[TJ Holmes]

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[Hoda Kotb]

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[TJ Holmes]

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[Ray Porter]

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[TJ Holmes]

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[Rob]

Hey there, folks. It is Wednesday, July 1, and a dad in Florida went to his son's daycare at the end of the day to pick up his son. But the daycare said, your son is not here. In fact, you did not drop him off this morning. And that's when they all realized what was happening. And that's when they went out to the parking lot and made a horrific discovery. And with that, welcome to this episode of Amy and TJ Robes. We Every hot car death is tragic. None more so than the other. We see these stories, but for whatever reason, some of the details of this one are particularly gutting.

[Amy Robach]

I agree, because this dad had gone through his entire day Believing that he had dropped off his child at daycare. All the while he has parked his car and this is Florida, this is Plantation, Florida, Central Florida. And temperatures outside the car got into the 90s that day. So to just go about your business, drive back to the daycare center and think, yeah, let me just pick up my son. And the entire time he had been in the backseat.

[Rob]

Folks, we see this does happen every single year. Some more high profile than others, I should say Robes. And we've covered plenty throughout our careers. Again, some more high profile than the others. This one is getting particular attention right now. Robes one, of course, anytime you have this is going to get attention. But two, we're in the midst of what is going to be a hell of a record breaking and dangerous heat wave. So this is already on the top of people's minds. But yes, the details here we do not have. And they haven't released names of everybody involved just yet. At least police have not. But Robes, they got a call. This was, help me with the day here. Was this on Friday? This was a Monday.

[Amy Robach]

Monday. It was Monday. Yeah, it was Monday evening around 5:45pm

[Rob]

so yes, this is the world of Discovery Academy daycare. But they called 911 at 5:40pm in robes. This was right after this dad had shown up to the world of Discovery Academy to pick up his son.

[Amy Robach]

Yes. And so there was confusion because the workers knew his child wasn't there and they weren't surprised by it. They didn't call the parents and say, hey, what's going on? Why isn't your son here? Because the parents had already notified the daycare that their older child wouldn't be attending. So when the younger child didn't show up to the daycare, the workers I think reasonably came to the conclusion that, okay, well that that's not out of the ordinary because maybe they just decided to keep both kids out today. Because I would imagine normally if your child doesn't show up or something isn't as normal, they would probably notify the parents just like a school would. If your kid doesn't show up, they

[Rob]

let you know, get that email. Every time Sabine steps into that school two minutes late, I get a notice. So yes, every time your child's not there, you get some kind of alert. But to your point, Robe, then this was key maybe to this story. There was a reason that the daycare wasn't concerned.

[Amy Robach]

Exactly. So they just went about their day, did not notify the parents, and sadly the father is thinking he dropped him off. Look, A lot of times this is about a change in routine. And if you're used to doing the same thing every day, I don't know if he wasn't always the guy or the parent who dropped off the kid. Something may have changed, something could have distracted him, but my God. So he goes to pick up his kid per usual, and there's confusion. They don't know what's going. And as you pointed out, they all go out to check the car. It was the dad who opened the

[Rob]

door and it's the owner that we're getting the details from, the owner of the daycare who was there with the dad when all this was going on. And Robes, she said she started to piece together and to get their heads around what possibly had happened. So the dad goes out, opens the back door to the vehicle again, according to the owner, and immediately closes it and just starts screaming. That's the scene as described. Now, Robes, again, none more tragic than the others, but that is the moment, right? This dad had to realize that he made a mistake. He made a mistake, Robes, and he got so caught up in something else he was doing that he did not realize all day that he had made a mistake.

[Amy Robach]

This was an 18 month old boy, right? Little boy. That. That's something that you obviously will never get over, that you'll never not remember and think about probably every minute of every day. And you said he was screaming. He was screaming, oh my God, oh my God, oh my God. And so to imagine, oh, as a parent, the heartbreak of that, first of all, you lost your child. Your child is dead. But second, because of you, because of a distracted thought, because of a mistake you made, your child is dead. You are the reason why. And you would think I would think that that is punishment enough, but that is not typically what we see happen in this country.

[Rob]

It's harsh, Robes. It's harsh to say it the way it's the reality of what you said. It's sounds harsh, but this is one of those cases, Robes. This is not a matter of what I could have done differently. Even in the sake of a car accident, I ran a red light or I should have swerved better. There are certain circumstances where you could think about handling it differently, making a decision differently that could have changed an outcome. Robes, he is solely to blame. That, I mean, that's, that's just the truth. This is not to be harsh. He is. There's nothing else to point to, to. To blame to factor in. There's nothing else. And so I don't know how robes any parent gets over the death. I don't either year and a half year old child. But to know just something as simple like you do something so absent minded sometimes in our own lives, like oh my God, left my lock, my keys in the house, right.

[Amy Robach]

I left my phone on the plane, whatever this.

[Rob]

So that rope, this, I cannot imagine what this dad's dealing with. But rope, do they factor that into deciding whether or not to charge this man with a crime? We don't know how they're going to handle it. But historically Rome's chances are he's going to be charged. And statistically speaking, it's really likely that he's going to be charged.

[Amy Robach]

Absolutely. Look, we have covered, as you pointed out sadly so many of these cases and we've both interviewed parents after the fact. And the truth is most of the time prosecutors do seek charges against the parent responsible for the child's death. In 58% of the cases prosecutors seek the charges. And look, it varies from state to state, but after those charges 32% of the cases there is a conviction of some type. So a third of parents who are dealing with the most horrific loss possible also then now face criminal charges, sometimes spend time behind bars. There are varying punishments, but this father is likely going to be in that camp. If you look at the statistics, I

[Rob]

mean, how do you balance that out as a prosecutor? Do you have some type of mercy when there is no indication? There's nothing suggested that this was intentional of any kind. Right. So he made a mistake. But that mistake, robe still led to the death of a child. And I've heard prosecutors say in cases like this before, it's my job to advocate for the victim. That victim is a baby. So I don't know. And there's no word yet on how they might move about this. But they are investigating, checking out the circumstances and maybe they will charge him.

[Ray Porter]

Who?

[Rob]

Who knows with what. Like you said, varying degrees robes. But there have been some very serious ones.

[Amy Robach]

Yes. And look as the deterrent, look, this is already the third hot car death in the state of Florida this year alone. And the temperatures are only getting hotter. But in terms of how they weigh this, it's interesting. The daycare owner who gave a lot of these details to the press actually said I was the one who called 911. I tried to help the daddy. He is part of a wonderful family. They have been with us the past six years. They are great parents. I don't know how much that plays into it, but she said that he. I Just you don't know how this happens. Instead of taking the drop, making the drop to the daycare, he just went straight from his home to work. He never ever. I don't know if he doesn't usually take that route. If there was a phone. A lot of times I've heard of phone calls disrupting like a parent thinks he's going somewhere or they're going somewhere and then a phone rings and then they get distracted and they forget where they were going. The kids asleep.

[Rob]

But B, we already know one thing that was different about his routine. He was dropping off one kid instead of two.

[Amy Robach]

That's so true.

[Rob]

I don't know if that factored but we know something about the routine was different. One kid wasn't going to be there. Well, these are, these are tough. Every. Oh God. These stories are horrific but they happen every single year on average 40 deaths the year high car deaths ro 86% of them are younger than the age of three. And that makes sense. Their little bodies can't.

[Amy Robach]

There's. And they're sleeping. A lot of times you don't hear them, you don't remember. They're back there.

[Rob]

And robe. The other factor in that we're going to get into some of these factors about how it happens but since you just mentioned that the, the rear facing seats, you can't see the kid.

[Amy Robach]

That is so true.

[Rob]

And if the kid is quiet, not a peep.

[Amy Robach]

That's. You don't. You don't see your child. That's why. You know what babe? That's exactly it. I totally forgot about that because they even changed that recommendation from when I was a mom, a young mom. It we were able to flip them back around at one which I was so grateful for because I wanted to be able to see my baby. I know they have mirrors that reflect where you can see that but I always felt uncomfortable with the back facing seat. I always felt uncomfortable. And I don't know. I'm sure statistically speaking it's still saves way more babies lives to have them facing the back than to have them facing the front. Because you've got to think obviously if he was getting out you would see the baby. But when the seat is turned around, you don't remember.

[Rob]

You literally cannot see the child. That's how the head. If the head is going the other way and they're asleep or being quiet, you cannot see a thing. So who knows if that factored into this at all. But I was Rose. I was blown away by this. It makes sense. But we know overwhelmingly how the circumstances surrounding kid deaths, hot car deaths in this country, they happen just like this. When somebody is dropping a kid off at daycare. 45% of hot car deaths include that circumstance. Ropes.

[Amy Robach]

That's crazy because they, it must be a deviation from their normal routine and they forget because they're not used to dropping the kid off at daycare. And things happen, life happens, who knows? But my God, that is a staggering statistic.

[Rob]

Well, stay here. We're going to stagger you. You're going to be some more staggering information here. Robes. We are going to get into just for a moment whether or not he should be charged with a crime. One advocacy group says absolutely not. But here there are reasons why, why you might go along with. Also we'll get into some of the details that we've been touching on how these things can happen, who it happens to and how to prevent this. Stay here.

[Amy Robach]

I turned off news altogether.

[TJ Holmes]

I hate to say it, but I don't trust much of anything.

[Rob]

It's the rage bait.

[Amy Robach]

It feels like it's trying to divide people.

[TJ Holmes]

We got clear facts. Maybe we could calm down a little. NBC News brings you clear reporting. Let's meet at the facts. Let's move forward from there. NBC News reporting for America Nix.

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[Hoda Kotb]

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[Amy Robach]

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[Hoda Kotb]

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[Amy Robach]

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[Hoda Kotb]

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[TJ Holmes]

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[Ray Porter]

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[TJ Holmes]

Listen to Irsay the Audible and I Heart Audiobook Club on the iHeartRadio app or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Amy Robach]

Welcome back to this episode of Amy and tj where there is a sad and tragic reminder that heat kills. And this is, this is a story that I know every time we report it, every time we talk about it. Parents, caregivers shudder at the thought that they could possibly leave their infant child in a hot car and leading to their death. Well, that's exactly what happened in Plantation, Florida earlier this week. And a father may be facing charges now after his near 2 year old son died after being left in 90 degree weather outside the vehicle. Look, they've even had cases where it's been less than 70 degrees outside and a child still dies from heat exposure in that vehicle. It can happen quickly and the temperature Rises rapidly. So when it's that hot outside in Florida, it's. It's just an awful situation that can be avoided. And look, this is the 9th. This death is the 9th hot car death already this year in this country. And we're about to experience a heat wave and some of us are already in the middle of it.

[Rob]

Yeah, crack windows don't work at all with this doesn't work with your dog either. It just does not work. And overwhelmingly the statistics show that when this happens, it's an accident. And it's a caregiver that this happens to. It's somebody who cares about that child. A parent, nanny, or whoever it may be is when it happens. It's rare, Robes, that it happens. And it shouldn't say rare, but it does happen when people make bad decisions like, oh, I'm just running into the store for a minute. Those kind of things happen too. And I think those probably lead to more charges.

[Amy Robach]

Well, I was going to say that would be more criminal in nature because you are, you are tempting and it is illegal in some states to leave children unattended in cars, period, regardless of the temperature.

[Rob]

Even those folks don't have ill intent, but make a very stupid, a very bad and even a tragic decision. But this, I don't know, Robes, how much a prosecutor deals with that part of sympathy in making a decision like this. I do not know. There are plenty of people who think you do not and you should not charge parents who, you know, had no ill intent but made an awful mistake. The group I quoted, kids in cars, this advocacy group that we get so many of these statistics from, but they advocate and try to always educate about kids in hot cars, wrote this is how they explained why and how, or excuse me, why they believe folks should not be charged. I. They very succinctly made a point and I. It kind of a light bulb went

[Amy Robach]

off when they said, yeah, they said criminalizing unintentional acts is not a deterrent for future tragedies. In fact, it serves to further enforce the idea most parents believe this could never happen to me. Isn't that interesting? That is such. It took me a second to get what they were saying, I'll be honest. But once it landed, I thought, my God, that's so true because you now do an us versus them. I would never do that. Oh, I can't believe they did that. That's a criminal act. How dare they? Versus the empathy and understanding that it could happen to any of us. And when you think about it in those terms, why would you further punish a parent? The biggest punishment I could ever receive, ah, I could get emotional saying it is knowing that my child was no longer alive because of something I did. There would be no greater punishment. I wouldn't even care at that point. I don't think if I was locked up forever like, that would never be. Oh, parents aren't thinking, I don't want to go to jail. They're thinking, I don't want my child to die.

[Rob]

Yeah, he's not thinking about. He's not thinking about jail at all. He could give a damn. He absolutely. At this point. But Ro. That idea. And this is something I always think about with our dear friend Jeff Gardier, when he was making this point at some event, he talked about people projecting and people having difficulty or whatever in their own lives, and then they see somebody else and they see somebody they can target and they just project and they just start pouncing on them. This idea, Rose, that we can all separate ourselves from someone who did something like this by saying, you're a terrible person, you're a bad parent. You're the. You're. You're separating yourself. You're not putting yourself in their shoes, and therefore you think you are invincible. Therefore you are not making proper adjustments. And maybe you're. You're not paying attention the way you should. And I just. They put it in such a succinct way. Way that just this, by actually charging people with this, you're criminalizing something that is now turning everybody into. These aren't monsters, all these parents.

[Amy Robach]

No, they're not.

[Rob]

Especially this guy. He's a parent just like anybody else who cares about their kid. And he made a mistake. You can do it, too. That's how we. I wish we stopped doing. Covering a lot of stories and looking at a lot of things like this. Yes, that's you too. That idiot that just did that thing you're capable of. Your family members are. They made a mistake. You can make the same. We separate ourselves like that, we stop having sympathy and certainly empathy for our fellow man. That's certainly where we are right now, it seems. Robes, we're all the same. We want the same things. We love the same way. We have the same passions and robes. We make the same damn mistakes.

[Amy Robach]

Yes, all of us have been on autopilot, as you pointed out. It might have been something as simple as. I left my glasses, I left my keys, I left my phone, and quick distraction. It doesn't take much for our brains to shut down, and that is Almost certainly what happens in all of these cases or nearly all of these cases.

[Rob]

There was a. I did read a scientist was making that. You just said autopilot. They do talk about how your brain and many of us, we just get in routine on autopilot. They said that actually shuts down your memory. It shuts down your memory. You actually don't remember what you're supposed to be doing because you're to trying just doing stuff.

[Amy Robach]

How many times do you walk? Because we are exceptionally busy and the busier you are, the more likely that is to happen, period. But you. How many times have each of us walk into room and go, why did I come in here? I mean, all of us have done that.

[Ray Porter]

That's.

[Amy Robach]

It's the same mindset.

[Rob]

That's. Yes, that is 100%. So you can see how it happens. It just. You feel terrible for this guy Robes. And if they think punishment needs to. I don't know where I would sit.

[Amy Robach]

I know where I sit.

[Rob]

Somebody needs to be punished in this victim. I. I just don't know, Rose, how I would. Ah. I don't know how it looks if

[Amy Robach]

you make a choice to leave your kids in the car for whatever reason. I'm all about criminally charging those parents, but a parent who just makes a tragic mistake, like in this case and so many others we've reported on, I just don't. I just think it's. It's salt in the wound.

[Rob]

Yeah. And how we've hit on a little bit here. How does this happen? Yeah, we talked about routine change a kid's presence. They said robes isn't a normal part of your routine. Maybe you're just doing a favor that day and I don't know, you got the kid in the car. Maybe you stop at the gas station, maybe you make a quick stop and then all of a sudden you forget

[Amy Robach]

there's a kid back.

[Rob]

There's a kid back there. And you. The statue you saw up there, the miscommunication between caregivers ropes. 11% of the deaths I do happen.

[Amy Robach]

I have seen that happen.

[Rob]

Having it you as a miss. Who's getting the kid? Who. I thought it was you. Oh, I thought it was you. Who's got. Wait, it's me today. Oh, I got the kid ropes. That's. That's a high percentage just from miscommunication that kids are dying. Perhaps you drop the kids off. Out of order is another suggestion.

[Amy Robach]

Yep. I mean, I have heard all of these stories. If it's. And it can happen to anyone that is the biggest deal. And so that is why we have seen cars and sometimes we rent cars and we'll be in another and they'll have the alert in the back of the car that'll tell you, check for child and it'll light up on the dash. Sometimes they even have an audio.

[Rob]

Do we have that in our car right now?

[Amy Robach]

I. I don't know. I don't think we do. We don't have a. A family friendly car. It's not a car that most families would choose.

[Rob]

But you can put a family in it.

[Amy Robach]

You could, but it's more of a fun car rather than a family car.

[Rob]

Oh, but still. Yes, but those alerts again. We have been past our baby stages for quite a while. We've not been toting around kids for a while. So we didn't have this in our cars when we had kids. So we only see them when. Right. We don't need them. But I imagine these are great tools, robes. How do you keep this from happening? The first thing all these advocacy groups will tell you is just make sure to check the back seat. And that sounds simple enough.

[Amy Robach]

Just always make that be a part of your habit. And then put a kid toy in the front seat to remind you there's a child. I've heard that one before. And that makes a lot of sense. Just to remind, you know, to remind you I've got a kid back there. And then just have a policy in place with the daycare. No matter what.

[Rob]

That's a good one.

[Amy Robach]

Even if I've told you, still call and tell me your kid's not here or send an email or send a text because that time could be everything.

[Rob]

That's a good safety tip.

[Amy Robach]

I agree. I think that is huge. And look, there are things you can do. And the biggest thing you can do is not to tell yourself it can't happen to you. You have to believe it's possible. You have to believe or accept that we all get distracted. And something that is as important as a child can still slip your mind. If you get that. What if you get some big call that was. I told you, I sat down with the dad. He got a call. He had been out of work. He had dropped off his other two. He didn't normally drop off the toddler. Normally it was his wife. But he was gonna be going back home. He was gonna go there and then go home. And he got a call that he got a job at a construction site and he got so excited he just went straight to the construction site. And never remembered that he was supposed to drop off his toddler. It happens. It happens to the nicest, kindest, and, yes, really good parents. It happens to them, too.

[Rob]

Robes. The last thing we'll hit on here is something I just simply could not believe. But this advocacy group, part of the thing you see them talk about in their writing is about this. We talk about these alert systems in cars that let you know, hey, check the back seat to make sure a kid's not back there. Several cars, many of you listening, have been in cars. Maybe you have one. We just said we don't. But Robes, there has been a push for years to have a requirement that all new cars have that in it. Well, the rule was put in place in 2021 and supposed to be finalized in 2023. It's 2026. They haven't put the finishing touches on it to put the policy in place. Robes. I was reading about that, and then I was looking it up. And just three weeks ago, Senator Blumenthal of Connecticut wrote to the nhtsa, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, pushing and demanding that they implement the rule and make automakers put these in cars. To do what?

[TJ Holmes]

Robes.

[Rob]

Save potentially kids lives from hot cars.

[Amy Robach]

I love that.

[Rob]

And that was just three weeks ago. And here we are talking about this story today.

[Amy Robach]

My goodness.

[Rob]

Well, I wonder if he'll. This will be a part of the push in the conversation. Robes. That was just three weeks ago. He said, hey, what the hell are y' all doing?

[Amy Robach]

Well, good. And look, this is awful that it might take something, another tragedy to push it forward. But if it does, that is something. And it will save lives. There's no question. And again, look, that is the ninth death this year, the third in Florida. And if we average about 40 a year. Look, we need to get that going because it will save lives. That will make a difference.

[Rob]

Robes. Think about this one case. He drove to work, he opened his car door, and there would have been a bing, bing, bing, bing, bing, bing. Check the back seat.

[Amy Robach]

Oh, can you imagine that moment if you realized you were about to do something and you were stopped because of technology?

[Rob]

That's exactly what these things do. Every time we put a. You could put your purse in the back seat sometimes and it'll say, hey, because it knows the door was opened or there's some weight back there. Ding, ding, ding. He would have gotten the alert. Damn. Folks, just. It's a good time for this reminder. It's going to be an awful and really dangerous end. Robes are even predicting a deadly few days of weather with the Fourth of July coming in with two thirds of the country under this awful, awful heat advisory. So be safe, be careful, and check the backseat.

[Amy Robach]

Yes. Always a good reminder. And we always appreciate you listening to us. Everyone, I'm Amy Robach alongside TJ Holmes. We'll talk to you soon. This is an iHeart podcast. Guaranteed Human.