Parents can protect their children from many accidents and injuries by paying close attention to hidden dangers in public places and around the house.
Hidden Dangers Pose Injury Risks to Children
There are many hidden dangers that can cause serious injuries, even death to children, especially children under the age of five. Although most parents are aware of injury risks from car accidents, swimming pool drownings, falls on playground equipment, and choking hazards from toys, many parents are not aware of hidden dangers in public places and dangers around the house.
Escalators
Accidents on escalators are a leading cause of injuries for young children. According to reports from the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), most escalator injuries are from falls, but some very serious injuries are caused by hands, feet, clothing, and untied shoelaces getting caught in moving handrails and stair parts. Escalator accidents can happen quickly when children are sitting, climbing, or playing on moving escalators.
Shopping Carts
Over recent years, shopping cart injuries for children have received a lot of attention by the CPSC who reported over 107,000 shopping cart injuries between 2008 and 2012. Personal injury lawyers have seen serious fall and head injuries to children riding in shopping carts, a common item found in most grocery and large retail stores. Due to a significant rise in child injuries, most shopping carts now contain printed safety warnings.
Furniture and Equipment
According to the CPSC, there were at least 165 furniture tip-over deaths and 342 television tip-over deaths for children between 2000 and 2017, not including many more non-fatal injuries that required emergency medical treatment. Young children often try to climb on dressers and bookcases to reach higher items. If furniture isn’t properly secured by hooks or straps, it can easily tip over causing crushing injuries, broken bones, and severe head and brain injuries.
Kitchen Appliances
Kitchen appliances used every day in the home cause many burn injuries seen by personal injury lawyers. Young children often sustain serious burn injuries from hot stoves by reaching and climbing. If a child reaches or climbs for something on the stove, he/she may be injured by hot burners, pans of scalding water, and falls. Dishwashers give children easy access to sharp knives, forks, and cooking utensils, as well as detergents containing hazardous ingredients. To prevent serious injuries in the kitchen, children should always be supervised by a parent or another adult, especially when meals are being prepared.
