Children freed from cars once a week
Fire crews are called out to rescue children locked in cars almost once a week in the West Midlands, new figures show.
The region's fire service helped free children 49 times in the last financial year.
The number, revealed in a Freedom Of Information request, has been broken down further to show crews rescued children on 25 instances in the Black Country during the same period.
Tipton Fire Station had the most call-outs with four, followed by Dudley, Oldbury and Wolverhampton with three each.
The figures mark an increase in the Black Country, from 22 incidents the year before.
Typically, babies and young children become locked in cars when vehicle doors are accidentally shut with the keys left inside.
When the parent is distressed or during periods of hot weather, the fire service can be called.
Today, Neil Spencer, spokesman for West Midlands Fire Service, said: "Ideally we would ask people not to leave young children in their vehicles without an adult.
"For every such call we attend means resources are tied up and we can't attend genuine emergencies.
"However, we understand that children will sometimes play with car locks and buttons and we appreciate the distress from parents desperate to get them out."
Mother-of-one Kyra Hill, from Lye, said she was surprised children got locked inside cars, but voiced her sympathy for the distressed parents.
The 26-year-old said: "I didn't know something like that could happen, I suppose if you were rushed accidents could happen though.
"I do have sympathy with those parents, it must be so frightening to see your children but not be able to reach them inside the car."
A locked child in a car could be categorised under a non-emergency call-out, which from two years ago West Midlands Fire Service said it would start charging for.
Under the scheme, anyone requesting help for problems such as animal rescues and lock-outs could be charged for the call-out costs, which is currently £412.80 per fire appliance, per hour.
The fire authority has the ability to charge under the Fire and Rescue Services Act 2004.
In the first 10 weeks of the charges being enforced, the service invoiced 17 people for around £10,000 in total.
That amount represented around seven per cent of the 260 call-outs that may have incurred charges during that period.
