As the final days of summer arrive, more kids will be returning to school, and now will be
as good a time as any to focus on efforts parents can take to keep their children safe. When
your child happens to suffer any kind of injury at school or on their way to school, make
sure you are working with a Charleston personal injury attorney.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report that child unintentional
injury death saw an 11 percent decrease over the past decade, but over 7,000 children and
teenagers up to 19 years of age died because of unintentional injuries in the most recent
year, translating to about 20 deaths a day. The National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration (NHTSA) reports that 3 percent of 36,096 traffic fatalities and 183,000
injuries in the most recent year were children 14 years of age and younger.
Concerns About Back-to-School Safety
When it comes to safety concerns regarding your children, the National Safety Council
(NSC) notes that you will be focusing on two primary categories of concern:
Transportation Safety
Regardless of whether your child walks to school, rides a bicycle, or takes a bus, you will
have some kind of concern regarding their method of travel. When a child does walk to
school, take the following steps:
● Make sure your child knows to walk on the sidewalk when one is available.
● If a child walks on a street with no sidewalk, they should walk facing oncoming
traffic.
● Before crossing a street, children should stop and look in both directions to see if
cars are coming.
● Tell children they must always make eye contact with drivers before they cross
streets and always cross at crosswalks or intersections.
● Stress the importance of staying alert and avoiding distracted walking.
If your child rides a bike to school, teach them the rules of the road and also take time to
practice riding the bike route to school. Helpful advice to keep in mind includes:
● Tell children to ride bikes on the right side of the road with traffic.
● Kids always need to come to complete stops before crossing streets, and they should
try to walk their bikes across the street.
● Again stress the importance of staying alert and avoiding distracted biking.
● Ensure your children have properly fitted helmets and bright clothing.
If your child takes a bus, the NSC states that buses are safer than walking or taking a car,
but there are still safety rules to keep in mind, which can include:
● Teach children the best way to get on and off a bus.
● Teach children to stand 6 feet away from the curb.
● When a child must cross a street in front of a bus, teach them to walk on the side of a
road until they are 10 feet ahead of a bus so the child and the bus driver can always
see each other.
When a parent drives their child to school, it is important for the parent to be the one who
stays alert and avoids distracted driving. Parents will be the ones who have to follow safety
advice, which can include:
● Obey school zone speed limits following a school’s drop-off procedures.
● Always make eye contact with children who are crossing the street.
● Never pass school buses loading or unloading children.
● Honor the 10 feet surrounding a school bus by stopping far enough away to allow
children to enter and exit buses safely.
School Safety
Child injuries can happen at the actual schools, but many accidents are preventable. You
can ensure your child’s safety at school by:
● Choosing backpacks for children carefully to ensure they have ergonomically-
designed features to enhance safety and comfort.
● Asking children to use both straps when wearing backpacks to distribute weight on
their shoulders evenly.
● Not overstuffing backpacks, so they weigh no more than 5 to 10 percent of a child’s
body weight.
● Using rolling backpacks cautiously because they can create trip hazards in crowded
school hallways.
On playgrounds and while playing sports, parents should strive to:
● Reduce strangulation hazards on playgrounds by having children leave necklaces
and jackets with drawstrings at home.
● While basic bumps and bruises may be common, do not ignore head injuries.
Call Us Today to Schedule a Free Consultation with a Charleston
Personal Injury Attorney
If your child suffers any kind of injury in an accident resulting from the negligence of
another party in West Virginia, make sure that you retain legal counsel as soon as possible.
Cary Law Office has a wealth of experience representing victims of all ages, including
children.
Our firm understands that certain injuries can involve entire lifetimes of injury concerns,
and we will work to help you recover fair and full financial compensation for all of your
losses. Call (304) 804-6369 or contact us online to set up a free consultation that will allow
us to examine the details of your case better and outline what steps you can take.