Dead chirldren and seatbelts [article]

mike65

This from the indo today

A SHOCKING 77pc of children killed in car crashes on Irish roads over a five-year period were not wearing seatbelts or restrained in special child harnesses/baby seats, a major new study revealed yesterday.

An incredible seven out 10 children killed in the front passenger seat and eight out of 10 in the back were not wearing seatbelts, it also found.

This means that 53 of the 69 children under 15 years killed during the five years from 1996-2000 were not strapped in.

The alarming disclosure yesterday prompted the National Safety Council to call on parents to ensure their children belt-up over the coming treacherous May Bank holiday weekend.

The five-year study "The Road to Safety in Irish Children 1996-2000" was jointly conducted by consultants Dr Alf Nicholson and Ann Waters from the Department of Paediatrics at Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, Drogheda and the National Roads Authority.

Children killed in the back seat were aged 0-3 years (27pc); 7-9 ( 21pc); 10-12 (19pc) and 13-15 (24pc). The research found that 79pc of rear seat victims and 73pc of those in the front seat did not wear a seatbelt.

Pat Costello, National Safety Council (NSC) chairman, said it was simply not safe to allow a child to travel unrestrained. "In a crash at just 30mph, an unrestrained child would be thrown forward with a force 30 to 60 times their body weight." The child would be thrown about inside the vehicle - quite possibly seriously injuring someone else.

Mr Costello said it was not safe to hold a child on an adult's lap in a car. "In a crash, the child could be crushed between your body and part of the car's interior. Even if you are using a seatbelt, the child would be torn from your arms - you would not be able to hold onto them, no matter how hard you try," added the safety chief.

It was also dangerous for an adult holding a child to use one seatbelt for both.

The safest way for children to travel in cars was in a child seat suitable for their weight and size. "A properly fitted child restraint keeps the child in their seat, preventing them from being thrown about inside, or ejected from the vehicle. It also absorbs some of the impact force. This means that your child is much less likely to be killed or injured in a crash."

Mr Costello said: "Seatbelts are designed for people about five feet in height and taller. So don't let your child graduate to using the seatbelt too soon. Ideally, a booster seat or booster cushion should be used which will enable the seatbelt to go around the child adequately."

From next July, drivers can receive up to four penalty points for permitting a person under 17 years old to occupy either a front or rear seat without a seatbelt or appropriate child restraint.

Mike.

Victor

I wonder how many of those parents / drivers were charged why death through dangerous driving, etc. I wonder how many of those parents are alive.

Pimp Ninja

I think that I read somewhere a while back that it was illegal to have a child of less than 12 years of age in the front passenger seat at all...

Or did I just make that up in my young mind?

commuterised

Originally posted by Pimp Ninja
I think that I read somewhere a while back that it was illegal to have a child of less than 12 years of age in the front passenger seat at all...

Or did I just make that up in my young mind?

When we were younger our parents told us we could not sit in the front until we were 12 so I think that is probably true, my parents wouldn't lie.. would they?!

Pimp Ninja

The thing is I read it in a magazine somewhere though. I can remember it quite vividly, we were staying in some rented holiday home down the sticks somewhere. I remember reading this and pointing at my little sister and telling her that she cant sit in the front seat anymore because she wasnt 12.

daveg

Originally posted by Pimp Ninja
I think that I read somewhere a while back that it was illegal to have a child of less than 12 years of age in the front passenger seat at all...

Or did I just make that up in my young mind?

I think it actaully 7 years of age (by law).

It never ceases to amaze me how many cars you see driving around the place with kids sitting on their mothers/fathers knee in the front passenger seat of the car (with no seat belt on). Do these people not realise if they have a crash the child is dead ?

To me it is the equivalent of holding a loaded gun to a Childs head. The Garda's should really clamp down on that shít.

Hyzepher

Its more disgusting when you see the parents taking the time to buckle themselves up but not their children.

Hyzepher

Vuk

I wonder how many of these children were allowed to stand in the middle and behind the front seats, this annoys me more than the constant 45mph through all speed limit drivers!