Wednesday, December 28, 2016

SAFETY: A Christmas miracle

A young couple I know were driving home from Christmas dinner when they were hit by another car on Route 926 at the Conservatory Road intersection (the Red Lion intersection). Their car flipped and rolled over a few times. The husband and wife are sore and have a few cuts and bruises, but their two young children didn't even have a small scrape.
She writes: "All the emergency responders couldn't believe we were all fine; they expected a different outcome upon seeing the accident site. It was a Christmas miracle for sure."
She absolutely believes the car seats saved her children's lives and writes: "There is no price you can put on the safety of yourself or your children. Here are some of the rules we follow and I beg you to follow them too.
"1. Invest in an awesome safety-rated car seat. It will be more expensive, but completely worth it. We have a high-back booster for our son. For our daughter we have the Advocate convertible car seat.
2. Practice extended rear facing. The new law in PA says children must stay rear-facing until 2 years old. Even though [their daughter] is almost 2.5, we will continue to have her rear-facing until at least 3. It is the SAFEST position for your baby/young child. I would rather her end up with a broken leg than a broken neck.
3. Just because your child seems old enough for a booster does not mean you need to switch him/her. Car seats have weight and height limits; look at those before switching. And when you do, please consider a high back booster with a 5-point harness. This is what [their son] was in and I guarantee it is why he did not suffer whiplash like we did, or anything worse.
4. PULL THOSE CAR SEAT STRAPS TIGHT, to the point where you feel like it is too tight. We have the click-tight straps in our car seats, and we still pull it tighter. I want to know my children are completely secure. And, make sure the clip is at armpit level.
5. Do not keep winter coats on your children in the car. Neither of our children had coats on during our car accident. Because of this, their straps were able to be pulled tightly to keep them secure.
Hug your family and babies a little tighter and remember they are the most important thing in the world. Nothing else matters. Do whatever you can to make sure they are as safe as possible."

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