Archive for the ‘Safety’ Category

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When is an accident not an accident?

Saturday, February 3rd, 2007

When is an accident not an accident? When it’s preventable.

A Pennsylvania father was in the news for leaving his 13-month old son in an SUV with a loaded shotgun so he could retrieve a deer carcass. He explained that he could see the vehicle from the woods, and the gun wasn’t pointed at the child. He received three years probation, a $500 fine and ordered to take parenting classes. The father apparently didn’t see anything wrong with it.

I was recently in a Dunkin’ Donuts parking lot and noticed a three-year-old in her car seat with the car running and no adults in the car! I stood there until someone (possibly the mother) appeared and glared at her. I was too furious to speak, but next time (and I hope there won’t be a next time) I would stand by the car and immediately call 911. Would this be the parent to cry on the nightly news for the safe return of their child in the event of a carjacking?

These incidents are clearly preventable by applying some common sense, which means they do not qualify as accidents. Folks, there is no shortage of real accidents, so let’s be more careful and conscious to prevent the incidents we can.

Safety doesn’t happen by accident. ~Author Unknown

Here are some wonderful and fun safety quotes from the Naval Safety Center. Moms everywhere will love these!

Posted in Parenting 101, Safety | 14 Comments »

When Peer Pressure Is A Good Thing

Tuesday, January 30th, 2007

In a January 18th post to this blog, I wrote about how the most terrifying seat in the world was you in the passenger seat next to your teen driver.

There is another seat even more frightening; where your teen is the passenger in a friend’s car. Your child’s friend may be a good kid, but not a great driver. We have to arm our children to speak up if they feel their friends are driving recklessly and learn as much of cars as they can from sources as the Automotive News Center, so they can use this knowledge to know when the car is failing and more and avoid accidents and other issues. This is where peer pressure is a good thing.

I am not a fan of statistics since I don’t think teens listen to numbers, but I am not writing to your teen; I am writing to you. There is one more interesting statistic, but let’s phrase it in the form of a question. What is the most dangerous time for your teen to drive? Between 3 and 5pm weekdays.

Use this information as a way to start your own conversation with your teen. Watch the Ad Councils video and give your teen a way out of dangerous situation.

Bravo to the Ad Council for starting this terrific campaign which encourages teens to be the spokesperson against reckless driving.

Here are some facts from their site:

• Teens Will Listen
Eight in 10 teens say that if a friend told them their driving behavior made their friend feel uncomfortable, they would listen. (Source: Ad Council)
• Influence on Friends
Nearly 70% of teens say they have a lot or some influence to stop their friends from driving recklessly when they are a passenger. (Source: Ad Council)
• Concerned About Friend’s Driving
Four in 10 teens say that in the past six months they have been in a situation when they felt concerned that a friend’s driving behavior put them at risk as a passenger. (Source: Ad Council)
• Risky Driving Behavior
Three in 10 teens say that in the past six months they have been in a situation when their own driving behavior put them at risk. (Source: Ad Council)
• Issue Importance
Nearly 80% of teens call the issue of youth reckless driving prevention extremely important to them personally. (Source: Ad Council)
• SUV Rollovers
In 2000, SUVs had the highest rollover involvement rate of any vehicle type in fatal crashes – 36%, as compared with 24% for pickups, 19% for vans and 15% for passenger cars. (Source: U.S. Department of Transportation)
• Speeding
Sixty-seven percent of high school drivers say they speed and 27% say that speeding is safe. (Source: SADD/Liberty Mutual study)
• Cell Phones
Sixty-two percent of high school drivers say they talk on a cell phone while driving and 24% say that talking on a cell phone is safe. (Source: SADD/Liberty Mutual study)
• Safety Belts
Sixty-seven percent of high school drivers say they wear their safety belts while driving and 75% say that not wearing a seatbelt is unsafe. (Source: SADD/Liberty Mutual study)
• Afternoon Crashes
Nearly as many 16- and 17-year-old drivers are involved in fatal crashes between 3 and 5 p.m. Monday through Friday as on Friday and Saturday nights between 9 p.m. and 2 a.m. (Source: AAA)
• Passengers and Crashes
Crash rates increase drastically for 16- and 17-year-old drivers with every additional passenger in the car. (Source: AAA)
• Male Death Rate
In 2002, the motor vehicle death rate for male occupants age 16 to 19 was nearly twice that of their female counterparts. (Source: CDC, 2004)
• One out of Five Teens…
One out of every five licensed 16-year-old drivers will be in a vehicle crash. (Source: IIHS)
• Teen Deaths
In 2003, about 44% of all teen deaths were attributed to vehicle crashes – more than triple the number of teen suicides and more than double the number of teen homicide victims. (Source: NHTSA)
• Teen Passengers
In 2002, 61% of teenage passenger deaths happened when another teen was driving. (Source: IIHS)
• Teen Crashes
Per mile driven, sixteen-year-olds are involved in more than five times as many fatal crashes per mile driven as adults. (Source: NHTSA)
• Teen Percentage of Crashes
In 2003, teenagers accounted for 10% of the U.S. population and 13% of motor vehicle crash deaths. (Source: NHTSA)

Posted in Communication, Safety, Teens | 2 Comments »

Toddler Tantrums on Airtran

Thursday, January 25th, 2007

A three-year-old toddler’s tantrums delayed an AirTran flight from taking off. Although the parents paid for the child’s seat, the child refused to sit, and was hitting her parents. The child wanted to sit in the mother’s lap, but the rules on air line safety are very clear. Children over the age of two are required to have their own seat.

What would the parents have done if they were getting in a car, preparing to drive and the little girl wanted to sit in the mother’s lap? A parent’s job is to keep their child safe, and an airline has the responsibility to keep all passengers’ safe.

Despite the fact that there were two parents and one child, the parents were apparently outnumbered by a three-year-old. Supernanny, Nanny 911 and Dr. Phil must be fighting over the television rights to this one.

Parents, please remember that you are the parent.

Posted in Parenting 101, Safety | 19 Comments »

Teen Driving

Thursday, January 18th, 2007

Baby on Board
We move from the “Caution – Baby on Board” window decals, quickly graduate to proudly displaying our children’s sports team decals, and onto “Proud Parent of an Honor Student” bumper stickers.

In the blink of an eye, our children take the wheel and we move from driver (actually chauffer) to the passenger seat; the scariest seat on earth when your teen becomes the driver. Even more frightening are the statistics and stories of accidents and fatalities with this age group. Do any of us listen to the incredibly alarming statistics? Certainly not teenagers.

A parent, unlike any other job, has a responsibility to work ourselves out of a job. Our goal is to raise happy, healthy, independent, well-adjusted children that contribute to society. That means that we won’t chauffer them around forever. At some point, they will be taking the wheel. The best thing we can and must do, is to prepare them, and learn more yourself.

Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety provide an explanation of the graduated licensing system, and a link to your state’s safety state law chart. That includes not only graduated licensese, but also where you state weighs in on booster seat and safety belt laws.

Remember, it isn’t just our teen driver at risk, it is other drivers, children riding bikes, dog walkers, moms with babies in strollers. According to a car accident lawyer, teen driving is more than a parent/teen concern, it affects the whole community.

Visit Parental Wisdom and click on Free Reports to see a template of a Safe Driving Contract. There is an editable version and a PDF (print) version. Make it your own, but most importantly, take the time to talk with your child about the rules (your rules) on the road.

Have a safe trip!

Posted in Safety, Teens | 26 Comments »

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