Dionne Whitehead had no idea that her daughter was in imminent danger that would leave her with horrible, second-degree burns. One hot summer day, Dionne decided to take her daughter to the Mountview Park in Cottonwood Heights near Salt Lake City, Utah. The temperatures were in the mid-nineties, and the children cooled off on the splash pad before heading toward the slides.
Three-year-old daughter Presley hurried up to the top of the play equipment to enjoy the slides. She began screaming and mom Dionne hurried to climb the slide to reach her daughter.
“I couldn’t even touch the slides to get up to her,” Whitehead said.
She climbed up, balancing herself, and quickly grabbed her screaming daughter. Presley was taken to the doctor and diagnosed with a second-degree burn on the back of her leg.
“I never thought it would get that hot to where it literally melted her skin: 10 seconds tops she was at that slide,” Whitehead exclaims.
Reporter Debbie Dujanovic of KSL-TV went out with the filming crew to investigate the slide temperatures in the Salt Lake City area. Their findings were shocking.
After purchasing a surface thermometer, they tested the temperatures of several slides in the area and even at various parks in the area. Temperatures varied from 155 degrees to almost 200 degrees in the sun. They received several readings that were in the 180-degree range.
The particular slide that Presley got burned on was a startling 186 degrees.
At just 155 degrees, water can cause a third degree burn with just one second of exposure.
What was most alarming about the results of the slide temperatures test was the differences in temperature were often solely affected by color. The darker colors, such as blue and green, were the hottest. A yellow slide in the shade was only 104 degrees; the lowest reading that the news crew received. The blue slide temperature was consistently the hottest.
If you remember the metal slides being hot as a child, they were nothing compared to the darker colored slides. Metal slides actually tested in the lower range of the findings.
When the news crew returned to the park to finish filming footage for the segment, they were shocked to witness a child getting burned on the slide right before their own eyes. The video below shows the incident as the child runs away screaming.
The city performed some of its own testings, and their results were similar to those that the news crew collected. The blue slide temperature was a scorching 160 degrees. The city received two formal complaints that resulted in them posting this sign.
While it is a start, many of the children and even some parents didn’t notice the sign at all.
The city of Cottonwood Heights is no exception. Children all over the world receive burns like Presley’s every year. What can be done to protect our children? Well, Janet Brooks of Primary Children’s Hospital recommends these tips.
- First, feel of the slide yourself. If it is hot to your touch, don’t let your child play on it.
- Also, avoid slides that face south and west in hot temperatures.
- Choose slides that are light in color and are located in the shade.
She further states in the interview that cities should consider installing lighter colored slides, like tan and yellow, and pointing them north to avoid heavy, direct sunlight.
One nearby town decided to take action. At a park in South Salt Lake, they erected two huge, colorful canopies over the play equipment. This is an inexpensive and feasible solution to a very dangerous problem, and it could save our kids from severe burns. Surface temperatures averaged 112 degrees.
This is encouraging news considering the temperature outside was an incredible 101 degrees. Hopefully, other cities will take action as well, but in the meantime, it’s up to parents to watch out for the blue slide temperatures and other dark colored slides to help their children to play safe.
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