Tyler Perry Offers to Pay For Funeral For Twins Left in Hot Car

Tyler Perry has reportedly offered to pick up the funeral expenses for the twin girls who died inside a hot car last week in Carrollton, according to WSB-TV.

The girls' mother, Breal Ellis, told reporters she is having trouble finding enough money to bury her 15-month-old daughters, Ariel and Alaynah.

Police say the girls' father, Asa North, was drunk when he left the girls inside his car on Aug. 4. Police were called to an apartment complex around 6:30 p.m. and neighbors trying to cool the girls down in the pool with ice packs.

North is charged with two counts of involuntary manslaughter and reckless conduct.

Hot Car Threat

The high temperature on Thursday in Carrollton was 87 degrees, but it doesn't have to reach dangerous levels outside to become a threat to people and animals left in a vehicle. July and August are the peak months for hot car deaths.

In the majority of cases of child heatstroke fatality – 53 percent – parents simply forgot their child was in the car, according to NoHeatStroke.org. Babies sleep soundly, and parents are stressed, rushing to get to work or driving on autopilot, not tuned in to a new schedule or change of routine.

Child deaths from heat stroke began trending up dramatically in 1998 along with awareness of the dangers airbags pose to children in the front seat. From 1990 to 1997, a total of 90 reported cases of children dying of heat stroke in cars were reported, an average of just more than 11 per year. From 1998 to 2005, that number more than tripled to 304, an average of 38 per year.

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