Infants dubbed ‘missiles’ when not strapped into safety seats

Injuries as a result of car accidents has been identified as one of the leading causes of death in children under the age of five.

A study conducted by the Medical Research Council reveals that road accidents cause around one-third of non-natural, or injury-related deaths in children under the age of five.

Recent changes to the law make it compulsory for motorists to safely secure children under three into a car safety seat.

However, the law does not require drivers of minibuses and buses which operate for reward to strap children into safety seats.

Netcare Alberlito pediatrician Dr Vanessa Comley is passionate about protecting little ones on the road.

“South African legislation, although now looking out for infants, is still far behind other countries and parents need to actively protect their children,” said Dr Comley.She said many parents were not aware that safety seats actually expire.

“Parents should be especially cautious when buying second-hand seats as one cannot know for sure if there is underlying damage without sending the seat away to be examined by professionals.”

Most safety seats have a shelf life of between six to ten years and manuals should be consulted to check the expiration date.

According to the Automobile Association of South Africa, global research indicates that safety seats reduce the chance of death or serious injury in crashes significantly.

“Despite this, many people still do not use car seats for their children using excuses such as: ‘I am only driving a short distance’, or ‘I am going to be driving overnight so there will be less traffic on the road’,” said the AA.

Excuses differ but, no excuse brings back the life of a child lost due to negligence.

Apart from ensuring children are secured in a car seat, seatbelt-wearing rates in South Africa are currently below 60 percent.

One of the AA’s most recent studies of child safety showed that a quarter of motorists admit to not restraining children under 12 years of age at all while driving.

“A ten kilogram child in a crash at 60km/h will weigh 600kgs at the moment of impact. At this weight, no-one is going to prevent that child from slamming through the front windshield,” said the AA.

KwaZulu-Natal Emergency Medical Services media liaison officer, Rob McKenzie said failure to safely secure children was a real problem.

“I have lost count of how many children were not safely restrained during car accidents. These children are often thrown from the vehicle and are in either a critical condition, or deceased,” said McKenzie.

He said child safety seats should never be placed on the front passenger seat because of airbags.

“Children are at an increased risk for injury during a crash owing to having proportionally larger heads and organs. This poses a risk of neck and organ injury,” said McKenzie.

Children essentially become ‘missiles’ in a car accident if not properly secured.

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