Thursday, September 2, 2010 the Valley County Child Safety Seat Inspection Station will be held in Ord at the Valley County Health System Garages, 217 W. Ridge Drive. It will be located at the south end of the Hospital’s back parking lot from 12:00 noon – 4:00 p.m. A Child Passenger Safety Technician will provide parents with education and assistance on the proper use and installation of their car seats and seat belts. The inspection station is accessible to the entire community and operates as a public service.
For an appointment call Susan Bochart at 1-800-736-7491, Ext. 145. Parents are asked to bring their child and the vehicle the seat is in most often. The safety needs of expectant parents, infants, and children up to age twelve will be addressed.
Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of unintentional related deaths for children ages 2 -14. In Nebraska, motor vehicle crashes claimed 6 children’s lives and 1,382 children were injured in 2008 according to the Nebraska Office of Highway Safety. It is estimated that approximately 89% of children who are placed in child safety seats in Nebraska are improperly restrained and nationally only 6% of booster-age children ride properly restrained in booster seats. Nebraska requires that all children up to age six be restrained in a child safety seat or booster. But parents and caregivers must go beyond age six. Most children up to about age eight and eighty pounds need a booster seat to fit properly in a lap and shoulder belt.
Sponsors for the project are Central Nebraska Community Services, Valley County Health System, and Nebraska Office of Highway Safety.
When properly used, child safety seats are highly effective in reducing death and injury. To assure children leave riding more safely than when they arrived, the inspection station will have a variety of car seats available to parents for a donation.
