Parents warned to take child safety in vehicles seriously
Airbags deploy at approximately 300 kilometres per hour. Sitting on your lap, your child becomes a human airbag.
LYDENBURG – “Your child will die or suffer severe head and bodily injuries.”
Deon Broekman, hazmat operator of Rapid Response, told Steelburger/ Lydenburg News that the disregard for child safety in cars is becoming a huge problem in town.
“You see it every day; parents driving while a child is standing on the front seat or sitting on the lap of the front-seat passenger. I have even witnessed parents driving with toddlers on their laps. Your child will be either killed in a collision or suffer major injuries.”
Broekman said that on impact, the child will be ejected through the windscreen of the car. He said children might even land under a car should an accident occur.
“Airbags deploy at approximately 300 kilometres per hour. Sitting on your lap, your child becomes a human airbag. Your child, not you, will be crushed and mangled on impact. Standing on the front seat, the child will be catapulted through the windscreen.”
Broekman said that the excuse of parents being able to react quickly to prevent a child from sustaining injuries is nonsense. “A split second, that’s how fast an accident happens, how fast a life can change. You will not react within that millisecond to ensure that your child will not sustain injuries.”
He said that it remains the parent’s responsibility to ensure that children are safe when travelling on the road. “A simple errand to town can turn fatal in a second.”
According to the Automotive Association of South Africa, all children under three years old have to be strapped into a car seat when travelling in a car. Adults and children older than three years need to be buckled up at all times.
