Promoting car seat safety

GREENVILLE, N.C. (WITN) - A local medical center here in the east hosted a safety event today that could save your child’s life.

ECU Health presented a car seat safety course Sept. 18th in the Kohls parking lot in Greenville. The event was joined by Ellen Walston, injury prevention program coordinator at ECU Health Medical Center and Safe Kids North Carolina, Mike Causey, North Carolina’s Insurance Commissioner and State Fire Marshal, Mark Ezzell, director of governor’s Highway Safety Program, along with the Safe Kids North Carolina volunteers and Pitt County Sheriff’s Office.

“The reason we do that is we want to teach children when they are young to be safe passengers so they can also encourage others to be safe in the vehicle. Even as a small child, they can tell their mommy to buckle up and it also encourages them to be safe drivers in the future,” Walston said.

According to NCchild.org, around 50 children are killed in crashes each year in North Carolina. So, a car seat can be an important tool to protect kids from the impact of a crash, but if used improperly can result in lifelong injury or death. According to Causey, 90 percent of the cars examined had unsafe car seats.

“The seats are old or outdated, and most of the time they are not fitted right on the seat because they are too loose and they are not fully able to restrain the child in the event of an accident,” Causey said.

According to NCchild.org, around 40 percent of children killed in car wrecks in our state weren’t properly buckled up and their deaths may have been prevented. That is why car seat inspections are essential.

“So this is a big deal, and very important to the community. It’s a free service that’s offered. We have these permanent check stations all across North Carolina and across the nation,” Causey said.

Caregivers are encouraged to stop by a child safety seat inspection station near them. To find the closest spot, go to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration website.

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