PAKENHAM State Emergency Service (SES) has urged parents not to leave children locked in cars.

The warning comes after SES volunteers had three recent callouts to local shopping centres.

Pakenham SES controller Andrew Graham said residents should think twice before leaving their children locked in a car.

“People have got to stop and think about what they’re doing,” he said.

“It doesn’t take long for a kid to become stressed and suffer from heat exhaustion.”

In the last month the Pakenham SES has been called out to three incidents in the Berwick-Narre Warren area. However, Mr Graham said child lock-ins had long been an issue in the Casey Cardinia area.

Mr Graham said that in most cases the child was removed from the vehicle by the time the SES arrived, but it was concerning that parents were willing to put their child at risk.

“It’s a concern because it doesn’t take very long for a car to heat up,” he said.

“It’s better to take your kid with you for five minutes and get your loaf of bread.”

Mr Graham said child lock-ins put a strain on SES resources and such incidents unnecessarily put the larger community at risk.

“Often we put our lights and sirens on. Road users can be at risk when we’re driving in an emergency situation,” he said.

Pakenham Senior Sergeant Alan McCarthy said child lock-ins were concerning as a five-minute visit to the shops could potentially result in tragedy.

“What was a five-minute visit can become 25 minutes if parents have to wait in a queue,” he said.

“On a 20-degree day in the sunlight, a vehicle heats up very quickly and the child is at risk of dehydration, death or serious injury.”