Car Seat, Car Seat Safety
- February 12, 2009
Child Car Seats To Get Dumped This Friday in Colorado
Attention Colorado residents!! Although it sounds weird it is true, Colorado State Patrol will be giving residents the chance to dump their old and defective car seats Friday at 11 a.m.
In an effort to get rid of old, defective and no compliant car seats the agency is encouraging parents to “Get Dumped” so that this chairs can never be used again.
Many times parents are not aware of the dangers of car seats that have been purchased secondhand, are too old or have been given to them by a friend,” said CSP Captain Rob Marone in a press release.
Seats can be brought to the CSP office at 3832 S. Interstate 25 in Fort Collins beginning at 11 a.m. Friday.
Pleasew see below for the rest of the Colorado State Patrol press release:
FORT COLLINS, CO – Protect your littlest ’sweethearts’ this Valentine’s Day by joining the Safe Kids Larimer County Coalition for ‘getting dumped’ to ensure our children are riding safely motor vehicles.
Safe Kids Larimer County, Gallegos Sanitation Company and local law enforcement are hosting a special “Get Dumped” event on Friday, February 13th beginning at 11:00 a.m. Parents and caregivers with unsafe or defective child safety car seats are invited to bring them to the Colorado State Patrol Office, 3832 S. I-25 Fort Collins, and “dump” them.
More than 40 unsafe seats will be dumped into a Gallego’s Sanitation Company trash truck to illustrate that some seats pose a serious safety hazard for small children and infants. Many of the seats have been recalled, have missing parts, have been in a crash, or are too old (usually, older than six years old). These particular seats have been collected at car seat check-ups and other child passenger safety activities throughout last year.
Captain Rob Marone of the Colorado State Patrol says, “We are destroying these seats to make sure that they will never be used again. Many times parents are not aware of the dangers of car seats that have been purchased secondhand, are too old or have been given to them by a friend.”
Riding unrestrained is the greatest risk for death and injury among child occupants of motor vehicles. According to trauma data collected from Poudre Valley Health System and McKee Medical Center, over 140 children were treated due to motor vehicle crashes in Larimer County between 2004 and 2008. Since 2004, six children younger than 14 years old, have died in motor vehicle crashes on Larimer County roads.
When used correctly, child safety seats and safety belts are extremely effective and can reduce the risk of death by up to 71%. For more information, please call Injury Prevention Coordinator, Janet Werst at (970) 495-7504.
Safe Kids Larimer County led by Poudre Valley Health System, is part of Safe Kids Worldwide, the first and only global organization dedicated solely to the prevention of accidental childhood injury – the number one killer of children ages 14 and younger. There are more than 450 Coalitions in 16 member countries that comprise the Campaign.
And remember your child’s life is in your hands make sure that you protect it adequately by following this ten basic rules for car seat safety when buying and/or keeping a car seat.
