CDLLife set out to illustrate just how uncomfortable and unsafe it can be in a hot truck.
It seems like nearly each week, we see headlines of children and pets dying in hot cars. These tragic and senseless deaths have opened the eyes of the public, and many are crying for ways to prevent these types of accidents from happening again.
It’s time for the country and the media to recognize that in many cites and states throughout the U.S. truck drivers are forced to sit, eat, sleep, live in hot trucks because of anti-idling laws. Unless a truck has an APU, or the driver is in a state where he or she can idle, the truck must be turned off.
Can the driver crack a window? Sure, if the driver is parked in a safe place, but many would not feel comfortable or safe sleeping with the window open.
How can a driver get a good night’s sleep in a hot truck? How can we expect drivers to live under these conditions?
When the outside temperature is 90 degrees, the inside of a truck can get as high as 120 degrees. This is barbaric. Allowing a driver to suffer in a hot truck should be illegal.
-When it’s 90 degrees or above, the body can lose as much as half a gallon of water every 10 minutes.
-Heat stroke is a life-threatening condition. Death may occur in 10 to 15 minutes unless medical help is immediate.
-High humidify interferes with the body’s ability to sweat.
-“Heat is the number one weather related killer across the United States (more than hurricanes, floods, lightning and tornadoes).” NOAA states.
-“When heat index values reach 115 degrees for one hour over a fairly large area…an Excessive Heat Warning may be posted.” NOAA continues.
-“Human beings aren’t built to spend long periods of time in temperatures that top the body’s own approximate 98.6 degrees,” National Geographic states.