Category: Child Safety

Kids in hot cars are a deadly combination. Whether intentional or accidental, these deaths are preventable, which makes it all the more tragic. Here are some helpful tips to make sure it doesn’t happen to you.

Remember:

• Never leave a child alone in a parked car, even with the windows rolled down, or air conditioning on. Children’s body temperature can heat up 3 to 5 times faster than adults’. A core temperature of 107 degrees is lethal.
• Always look in both the front and back of the vehicle before locking the door and walking way.
• Heatstroke can occur in temperatures as low as 57 degrees. On an 80-degree day, temperatures inside a vehicle can reach deadly levels in just 10 minutes.
• Never let children play in an unattended vehicle. Teach them a vehicle is not a play area.
• Always lock your vehicle doors and trunk and keep the keys out of a child’s reach. If a child is missing, quickly check all vehicles, including the trunk.

Is dropping off a child not part of your normal routine? Come up with some ways to remind yourself that the child is in the car.

• Place a briefcase, purse, or cell phone in the back next to the car seat so that you’ll always check the back seat before leaving the car.
• Call your spouse after you’ve dropped off your child to make sure you didn’t forget.
• Have daycare call you if your child doesn’t show up.
• Write a note and place it on the dashboard of the car. Or set a reminder on your cell phone or calendar. You can also download the Baby Reminder App for iPhones.

If you see a child alone in a hot vehicle:

• Always make sure the child is okay and responsive. If not, call 911 immediately.
• If the child appears okay, attempt to locate the parents or have the facility’s security or management page the car owner over the PA system.
• If the child is not responsive and appears in great distress, attempt to get into the car to assist the child, even if that means breaking a window.

Remember: kids in hot cars are a deadly combination. Don’t take the chance. Look before you lock.

Information for this post provided by National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Additional Resources:

• National Highway Traffic Safety Administration – www.safercar.gov/heatstroke
• San Jose State University, Department of Meteorology & Climate Science – www.noheatstroke.org
• Safe Kids – www.safekids.org
• Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia – www.chop.edu
• National Highway Traffic Safety Administration – www.safercar.gov/parents/InandAroundtheCar/heat-involved.html

Hot Cars!

The sixth hot-car death occurred a few days ago, in Brandon, Mississippi. The baby who died after being left in the back-seat of her mother’s car was two-years old. According to the ABC News station WALB, and “KidsandCars.org, a public safety awareness website for child safety, Mississippi ranks 16th among states with the most child vehicular heatstroke deaths with a total of 16 deaths between 1995 and 2016” in the U.S. (WALB, ABC News, May 11, 2016). So far, 6 children have succumbed in hot cars in the U.S. this year. There were 24 vehicular heatstroke deaths of children left in cars, in the United States in 2015. Since 1998, there have been 667 of this type of unnecessary childhood death. (“Child Vehicular Heatstroke Deaths”, Null, Jan, Dept. of Meteorology and Climate Science, San Jose’ State University, noheatstroke.org/ Updated May 11, 2016) The NHTSA advises parents to leave a clue in the backseat like a purse or briefcase which would urge a parent to check the back seat and a child’s toy in the front seat as a reminder there’s a child in the car.

Improper Seatbelting

Children are also at risk if they are not properly placed in booster or child seats in cars. According to CBS News, Ryan Jaslow’s account, “Car crashes are the leading cause of death for children older than 3 in the U.S. and cause another 179,000 child injuries each year. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), child safety seats cut death risk by 71 percent for infant passengers and 54 percent for toddlers between the ages of 1 and 4 – if they are used properly.” (CBS News.com, “U.S. Children At Risk From Poor Adherence to Car Seat Guidelines, Study Warns” Jaslow, Ryan, Health Editor, www.cbsnews.com/news/us-children-at-risk-from-poor-adherence-to-car-seat-guidelines-study-warns/ ) It would make sense to use the child safety seats properly. But often, parents who do not use seat belts do not ensure their children are properly seat belted! The American Academy of Pediatrics advises parents to place infants and toddlers in rear facing seats until they reach age 2 (or exceed the seat’s weight or height maximums).

Drownings

Drownings are one of the leading causes of childhood death and injury, and non-fatal drownings may cause lasting brain damage. The problem of accidental (non-boating-related) drownings is a major one in the United States, says the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Accidental drownings average more than 3,500/year or about 10/day, according to the CDC. “About one in five people who die from drowning are children 14 and younger. For every child who dies from drowning, another five receive emergency department care for nonfatal submersion injuries.” (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,1600 Clifton Road, Atlanta, Georgia 30329-4027 www.cdc.gov/homeandrecreationalsafety/water-safety/waterinjuries-factsheet.html )

Lastly, we need to remind our blog’s readers of this unhappy cause of childhood deaths:

Weapons in The Home Not Locked Up

May 4, 2016, the Orlando Sentinel published an article about a babysitter who brought a loaded weapon into a home where he was babysitting. A 6-year old child in Sanford, Florida, died from the apparently resulting accidental shooting. Over 2 years ago, a toddler got into a backpack brought into his grandmother’s home in Washington, D.C. That child died from an accidental shooting. Why are loaded weapons left on dressers, or in closets, or under pillows, or on bedside tables, or in backpacks–not locked up high where inquisitive children cannot get ahold of them? What is wrong with people who think they are immune to accidents like these? Why do any parents think their children are smart enough not to touch a gun belonging to another family member or guest in their home? Family members, caregivers and babysitters should know better. Parents and grandparents should know better. “Nearly 800 children under 14 were killed in gun accidents from 1999 to 2010, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Nearly one in five injury-related deaths in children and adolescents involve firearms.” (“Guns in the Home Proving Deadly For Kids”, USA Today.com, May 28, 2013, www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/05/11/children-protection-gun-violence/2079177/)

The sad statistics speak for themselves. Parents must be mindful of their charges and not worry about being perceived as overly concerned or over-protective. Children are precious cargo, they are the future. Young lives should not be snuffed out due to carelessness or neglect.

Release Date: March 11, 2015

Release Number: 16-118

WASHINGTON, D.C. –The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has approved a new federal mandatory standard intended to improve the safety of portable hook-on chairs and prevent deaths and injuries to young children. The Commission voted unanimously in favor of the standard (5 to 0) on March 8, 2016.

A portable hook-on chair is a legless seat attached to a table where the occupant sits and that is supported solely by the table on which the chair is mounted. Portable hook-on chairs are intended for children between the ages of 6 months and 3 years and who weigh no more than 37 pounds.

The new federal standard incorporates by reference the most recent voluntary standard developed by ASTM International (ASTM F1235-15), Standard Consumer Safety Performance Specification for Portable Hook-On Chairs, without modification.

In addition, the new safety standard addresses hazards associated with portable hook-on chairs, including:

compromised attachment
restraint or containment issues
unintended release of seat fabric fastenings
seat fabric separation due to breaking or tearing components
broken structural components.

From January 1, 2000 through October 31, 2014, CPSC received about 90 incident reports related to portable hook-on chairs. These reports included 50 incidents involving injury, 38 non-injury incidents and one fatality.

The effective date for the new mandatory portable hook-on chair standard is 6 months after the final rule is published in the Federal Register.

The Commission is required by The Danny Keysar Child Product Safety Notification Act, Section 104(b) of the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008 (CPSIA), to issue consumer product safety standards for durable infant or toddler products. In the past six years, the Commission has approved new federal safety standards for durable infant or toddler products, including full-size cribs, non-full-size cribs, play yards, baby walkers, baby bath seats, children’s portable bed rails, strollers, toddler beds, infant swings, handheld infant carriers, soft infant carriers, framed infant carriers, bassinets and cradles.

by Marianne F. Halterman

It’s Ground Hog Day, and there are 6 more weeks of winter.  Thinking about spring? You bet I am.  As the weather in the U.S. warms up, people will be venturing out of doors excitedly welcoming so many signs of spring: Crocuses, daffodils, redbud trees blooming. There is still snow on the ground where I live, but as the snow and cold weather subside, people will begin heading for ponds, lakes and rivers to picnic, fish, enjoy natural wildlife and pursue water sports.  They’ll be getting their outdoor water features, hot tubs and pools ready for warm weather use. Families with kayaks, canoes, all manner of water-crafts, sail and powerboats will be bringing them out of winter storage, and getting them ready to put them in the water.  So along with this warm-weather planning, I can’t help but think about safety precautions, and the challenges of child safety in these cooler months in particular.

In many parts of the country, water in ponds, rivers and lakes is very cold–and will remain so at least until sometime in May or June, depending upon your location. Atlantic ocean beaches in the Carolinas won’t be warm enough for comfortable swimming until the end of May-beginning of June. The more northern beaches will experience warming a little later.  Even though we are happily thinking about playing on the beach and eventually going swimming–the water is still cold. And cold water can be dangerous for us, humans.  So this is about hypothermia.

Hypothermia is a condition that occurs when the temperature of the human body’s core falls below  98.6° F (37° C) to 95° F (35° C) or cooler. Hypothermia can occur quickly. The human body’s heat loss in cold water occurs 25 times faster than it does in cold air. Hypothermia affects the body’s important organs, especially the brain, heart and lungs, and can cause physical and mental deficits, unconsciousness and even death.  According to the Minnesota Sea Grant, approximately 600 people die of hypothermia every year.  Children, the elderly and infirm, and people with compromised immune systems and health challenges, and people under the influence of alcohol or drugs, are frequently susceptible to hypothermia when exposed to cold temperatures of air and/or water for prolonged periods of time. Outdoor sports enthusiasts–people who boat, hunt, swim, fish, hike or ski are likely targets for hypothermia!

So are young children who play out of doors!  Outdoor activities and trips with friends and family can expose children to prolonged periods in the cold. Healthy adult human bodies may be better able to tolerate cold weather conditions and usually adults take breaks, but kids often do not. Children playing don’t realize how long they are out in the cold–and if hypothermia occurs–because children are too cold for too long–perhaps their clothes or shoes are wet and they’re out in the cold air too–emergency measures may be required to bring a child’s body temperature back to normal.  As parents, caregivers and family members, it is up to you, to supervise your children’s amount of exposure to cold weather temperatures, and make sure they are warm enough, that they wear appropriate clothing and that they not stay outdoors in the cold too long! And if they go on outdoor trips with friends, make sure there are adults cognizant of safety measures along.  As always, your child’s safety comes first!

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¹ Minnesota Sea Grant, “Hypothermia Prevention: Survival in Cold Water”, University of Minnesota Duluth, 31 West College Street, Duluth, MN 55812, www.http://www.seagrant.umn.edu/coastal_communities/hypothermia#who

Release Date: November 19, 2015

CPSC Release No.: 16-040

MEXICO CITY – Shoppers across North America are gearing up for the holiday toy shopping season, and federal regulators in the United States, Mexico and Canada are joining forces to help consumers shop with confidence.  The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), Health Canada and Mexico’s Consumer Protection Federal Agency (PROFECO) are holding their Third North America Consumer Product Safety Summit in Mexico City this week, and protecting young children from dangerous and illegal toys is a shared goal among the safety agencies.

Collaboration among the regulators has taken place through joint industry trainings, consumer outreach and education, and three trilateral recall announcements of harmful toys and children’s products. Additional efforts have included joint oversight of product supply chains and timely responses to emerging product hazards. The vision for creating a safer marketplace for consumers across the continent includes: (1) strong safety standards that are enforced, (2) inspections at import, and (3) an emphasis on quality safety manufacturing overseas.

“As we approach the holiday season, our three jurisdictions are working as one to protect children in all three nations from harmful toys,” said CPSC Chairman Elliot F. Kaye.  “Despite our real advances in toy safety, we are still finding too many violative toys at our borders. All consumers, regardless of which of our three nations they come from, deserve us working together to protect them.  This is why working toward seamless surveillance across North American borders is a critical part of our collaboration with Health Canada and PROFECO.”

“In today’s global marketplace, close collaboration between countries is important for keeping Canadians safe,” said Dr. Jane Philpott, Minister of Health, Health Canada. “I look forward to continuing Health Canada’s partnership with the CPSC and PROFECO on our shared goals for consumer product safety, including promoting toy safety this holiday season. As a mom and as Canada’s new Minister of Health, I’m committed to helping keep families safe.”

“Coordinated work among the consumer protection agencies in our region is the starting point to successfully face, in the near future, the challenges presented by the global economy; and, at the same time, assure every consumer that not only are their rights safeguarded, but also that the law exists to assist and protect them,” said Lorena Martínez, Mexico’s Federal Attorney for Consumer Protection (Profeco). “Only by strengthening strategic alliances and sharing efforts and experience, we will reach our mutual goals.”

In addition to working with Health Canada and Profeco, CPSC works closely with the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to keep violative products off of store shelves and out of consumers’ homes. In the past six years, the U.S. government has stopped more than 17 million units of about 6,200 different toys that violated applicable standards from coming into the United States.

Click here to view the North American joint statement.

Here are some safety tips for all consumers to keep in mind this holiday season:

• Magnets – Children’s magnetic toys are covered by a strong safety standard that aims to prevent magnets from being swallowed. High-powered magnet sets that have small magnets are dangerous and should be kept away from children. Whether marketed for children or adults, building and play sets with small magnets should also be kept away from small children.
• Balloons – Children can choke or suffocate on deflated or broken balloons. Children can also be strangled by a balloon string. Keep deflated balloons away from children younger than 8 years old. Discard torn balloons immediately.
• Small balls and other toys with small parts – For children younger than age 3, avoid toys with small parts, which can cause choking.
• Scooters and other riding toys – Riding toys, skateboards and in-line skates go fast, and falls could be deadly. Helmets and other safety gear should be worn properly at all times, and they should be sized to fit. Avoid riding scooters on streets or roadways.

Once gifts are open:

• Keep toys appropriate for older children away from younger siblings.
• Battery charging should be supervised by adults. Chargers and adapters can pose thermal burn hazards to young children. Pay attention to instructions and warnings on battery chargers. Some chargers lack any mechanism to prevent overcharging.

CPSC Release: http://www.cpsc.gov/en/Newsroom/News-Releases/2016/Collaborating-Across-Borders-North-American-Regulators-Working-Together-to-Protect-Children-from-Harmful-Toys/

Growing up, I know I was fortunate: I never had to be concerned about being caught in the middle of a gun battle, unless my playmates and I were playing cops and robbers in the backyard. In those days, their “guns” were their fingers, a stick, or a toy. But this is the real deal, folks. The Ridgewood-Glen Rock Patch reported this week that a young girl, 8 years old, in Asbury Park, New Jersey, was watching TV in her home. A gun battle apparently ensued on her street, police chased a suspect who obtained a gun… shots were fired, one shot went through the child’s residence. The child was hospitalized. This should NOT happen, and I believe any sane person will agree that too many times recently, people recklessly brandishing weapons are harming children who are nearby.

Gang culture and criminal drug distribution frequently play a part in this stupidity. Gang violence often catches children unawares. They get in the way and are shot. One look at Cook County, Illinois’, murder stats for the past two years (if you can find them on the Internet!) will show there were more than 2,000 deaths by gun violence. I don’t know how many of these were children–and frankly, I am afraid to look at the numbers because I am told they are quite high. The law enforcement community is aware that drug dealers have been known to use children as human shields hoping to throw off observant neighbors or law enforcement. The national news has now alerted the public that a six-year old child was shot–by the police–during a car chase. The parent was the subject of the chase. The child’s death? Sadly, collateral damage. And THIS should NOT happen. Children should never become collateral damage. Children should never be used as human shields. They are the most vulnerable among us, so what is wrong with this horrible picture?

In my view, we are becoming numb to the most horrific crimes and accidents involving firearms, because their numbers are increasing, so much so that we are losing count. 142 School shootings since Newtown! So much so that we refuse to talk about these crimes–or publish essays about them in our newspapers–we wouldn’t want to detract from business or tourism in our communities. I never had to think about guns when I was in school! School and guns were two mutually exclusive terms. I never had to think about being beaten on the street on the way to my classes.

Kids in Chicago and in other “rough” areas of our big cities are lucky to make it to class unscathed, not to mention what may happen to them while in school. This is simply wrong–and it has to stop. The Chicago Reporter’s Angela Caputo, reported in 2012, that “from 2008 through 2012, nearly half of Chicago’s 2,389 homicide victims — 1,118 — were under the age of 25 (chicagoreporter.com/youths-are-the-no-1-target-in-chicagos-homicide-epidemic/). That number has since increased to 1,336 through April 20, [2012]. Of the young people who have been murdered, nearly 500 are 18 or younger (chicagoreporter.com/homicides-chicago-down-number-children-killed-stays-same/).” Three years down the road, not much has changed, the numbers of childhood deaths by violence are still high.

At some point, America is going to have to roll back the liberal way we have allowed firearms- and weapons-related crimes to seep into our lives and to proliferate while allowing the gun-toting criminals who cause them, to live with all the benefits in our prisons.

Meanwhile the children–our country’s future– have been and are being sacrificed by the most selfishly evil elements in our society.

Know this! Children are our only real hope for the future, they are given to us as a blessing. They are the precious fruits of God’s love for us. Is this the way we treat God’s gift?

It’s almost that time of year. Parents, family members and caregivers are out there hunting for just the right costumes for their little ones. Some families are making them at home, and children are getting very excited in anticipation of Hallowe’en! The thought of all that candy, Hallowe’en parties, tricks, treats and fun is almost too much to bear.  Because we want you to “Booooooo!” not Boo-Hoo the day after, here are a few safety suggestions for parents, family members and caregivers to keep in mind about Hallowe’en trick or treating and costumes, in general:

1. Accompany your young children on a familiar route in your own neighborhood or on a route you and they know well. If you are crossing streets with them, hold their hands (please!). And you and they should wear some reflective clothing too–so cars can see you and them!
2. Take a flashlight with you to help navigate steps and curbs! Do not go where you don’t feel safe, for any reason.
3. Make sure children’s costumes do not drape the ground that they might trip or prevent them walking safely–or running–because you know they WILL run!
4. Make sure children’s costumes are breathable–that any mask (especially masks of rubber, plastic, or fake fur) covering their face has plenty of air holes and that arms, legs, neck, and head are not restricted from movement. Also make sure costumes themselves have air holes–you don’t want them to become overheated.
5. Encourage children to choose wrapped candy when possible.  Review their candy when they get home to make sure there’s nothing weird or inappropriate in the candy haul!
6. Make sure before you go out that in case you are separated your children know their names, your cell phone number and their home address. Attach a card in their coat with their name and address on it if need be!  Also, if they have a cell phone, make sure they know to call 911 if they feel in danger!
7. Tell children not to approach any vehicle,  occupied or not, unless you are with them!
8. Do not let children enter a home unless you are with them!  If your children are older (12+), encourage them to remain in a group as they trick-or-treat and not to become separated!
9. Make sure children are warm enough in their costume if it’s cold… or cool enough if it’s warm/hot where you are!

You will find more tips on the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children  website. If you want to donate to NCMEC, so that they can keep bringing missing children home to their families, please visit www.ncmec.org

From Panama City News Herald – 9/21/2015

© Copyright 2015 Gatehouse Media, Inc.

HOLMES COUNTY – A 9-year-old Bonifay boy was killed after the four-wheeler he was driving collided with a utility vehicle in Holmes County [Florida] Sunday afternoon.

For full story please see www.newsherald.com/article/20150920/NEWS/150929979

Boyfriend of ‘Baby Doe’s’ mother held without bail; mom’s bail set at $1M

(CNN)Little Bella Bond was allegedly killed by her mother’s boyfriend because he thought she was possessed and “it was her time to die,” a prosecutor told a judge at a Monday bail hearing.

See story at www.cnn.com/2015/09/21/us/boston-baby-doe-charges/.

Yesterday, a 4-month-old child died in a hot car in Corpus Christi, Texas. This is the 20th heatstroke death of the year and the 5th in Texas.

The boy’s 16-month-old sister was also left in the car, but she has survived. The two children were forgotten in the car by their father, with temperatures around 89 degrees.

Here is the full article:

http://www.caller.com/news/local/police-respond-to-child-left-in-vehicle-1f3d342b-0d3e-2f96-e053-0100007ff10a-325747961.html

It has been a sad week, with two heatstroke deaths so far. It is a tragic reminder that although the summer season is officially over, temperatures remain high for weeks to come, and therefore heatstroke is still a threat to young children. Thank you for continuously pushing out heatstroke messaging throughout the fall.