Arikh Hasan: Dad who is still tormented by his tragic mistake that cost his son’s life issues a gut-wrenching warning as Australia is hit by the first heatwave of the summer

EXCLUSIVE

A father whose three-year-old son died when he was accidentally left in a hot car has reached out to others with a powerful message warning of the dangers of forgotten child syndrome.

On February 2, Nevaz Hasan put his two sons in his car in Sydney’s west to go to school, taking his eldest to primary school and believed he sent his youngest to kindergarten before returning to their Glenfield home for work.

But when he returned to his car to pick up the boys that afternoon, he made a shocking discovery: his youngest son, Arich, was still buckled in the back seat.

Arich spent six hours in a hot car on a 35-degree day while the car was parked in his driveway.

Mr Hassan rushed his unconscious baby into a nearby shop and frantically began CPR until paramedics arrived, but despite their best efforts it was too late.

Now Mr Hassan, who has never been charged with any offence, has issued a timely warning to other Australians: New South Wales, interior South Australia and southern Queensland are forecast to bear the brunt of sweltering temperatures on Saturday.

Temperatures in Sydney will reach 44°C, 37°C in Canberra, 36°C in Adelaide and 31°C in Brisbane.

“Hot weather can turn a family like mine upside down,” he said. “I’m nervous and worried.

“I love my children, like any parents. Children’s safety is always my top priority.

“Before February, if someone had shared with me what I am sharing with you today, I would have had a family as happy as yours.”

Mr Hassan said “forgotten child syndrome” refers to accidentally leaving a baby or young child in a locked car, often with tragic results.

Causes include sleep deprivation, stress, changes in daily routine, burnout and fatigue, distractions, changes in caregivers or work schedules, tardiness, changes in cars, anxiety and depression, or poor health.

Parents and caregivers are advised that the best way to prevent forgotten child syndrome is to manage stress and sleep well, avoid making phone calls while driving, take responsibility for your child’s safety, and always check the front and back seats before leaving the car. .

Other safety tips include getting into the habit of opening the back door every time you park, leaving a child’s bag in the front passenger seat, and placing the child’s car seat in the middle of the back seat.

Parents can also ask their child care provider to call if your child is not dropped off, to be extra attentive if your routine changes, to leave a stuffed animal in the car, or to install and use preventative devices.

Mr. Hasan said that between February and August this year, 16 children died after being left in hot cars across the United States, leaving their families as heartbroken as his.

Psychology professor David Diamond says that “forgotten child syndrome” is not a problem of neglect, but rather of memory.

“The most common answer is that only bad or neglectful parents forget children in cars,” he told Consumer Reports. “It’s a matter of circumstances. This can happen to anyone.”

According to Dr. Diamond’s research, disruptions to daily routines, such as the typical summer holidays, are a common factor in these tragedies.

At the time of Arikh’s death, Hasan told the media that his little boy had been sleeping in the car that day and had not spoken to him during the drive as usual.

He believes the silence made him forget his son was there.

After driving his eldest six-year-old son to school, Mr Hassan forgot to take Arikh to kindergarten and instead drove back to the house, parked in the driveway and then returned home to work.

In the afternoon, he returned to the car without seeing his youngest son, still sitting in the back driver’s seat, and went to get his older child.

It was only when he picked up his eldest son and returned to the car that he realized his fatal mistake. However, the incident is far from an isolated incident.

More than 5,000 children are rescued from unattended cars in Australia each year, and at least 10 cases in the past five years have resulted in death.

In January 2023, just a month before little Arich died, NRMA rescued 213 children from hot cars across NSW and the ACT.

NRMA spokesman Peter Khoury said temperatures in cars had risen to double the temperature outside, meaning figures around 30 or 40 degrees could quickly prove fatal.

“It’s very dangerous here all year round, no matter the weather,” Mr Khoury said. “But it is especially dangerous in the Australian summer.

“This is clearly no place for a child, even for a few minutes.”

“It doesn’t take long for children to become severely dehydrated before organ failure sets in, followed by potentially catastrophic consequences.”