CPSC: Young children at higher risk of burns from objects in summer heat

July 20, 2012

KUSA-TV Denver (7/20, Garrison) reports that the Consumer Product Safety Commission has said that “young children are at risk for second- and third-degree burns” from touching hot objects in the extreme summer heat. The story explains that extreme heat from the summer sun can raise objects’ temperature so much that they can burn people in some cases. As the story notes, “objects such as blacktops, seat belt buckles and playground equipment can get hot enough to cause significant skin burns.” Younger children are at higher risk of such burns than older children, according to the CPSC, “because they do not pull away from hot surfaces as quickly as older children.”