RALEIGH - One Montgomery County mother learned firsthand the incredible importance of making sure a child’s car seat is properly installed after a harrowing, head-on car crash.
Taylor Kime of Mount Gilead was traveling home with her two children along NC 24/27 when a truck pulled out in front of her and turned across her lanes of traffic, hitting her Ford Explorer head on. After she recovered from the shock of the impact, she scrambled to the backseat to make sure her kids were ok.
“I could see they were all safe, and this was due to car seats being installed correctly, and me taking the time to put them correctly in the seats. I challenge every mother to make sure that their children are belted into their car seats,” said Kime.
“Protecting our youngest and most vulnerable passengers is a key focus of the NC Governor’s Highway Safety Program,” said NCGHSP Director Mark Ezzell. “It’s incredibly important that caregivers take the time, like Ms. Kime did, to make sure seats are properly installed and read instructions for how to secure children in them.”
NCGHSP funds Child Passenger Safety Technicians in all 100 counties who can help oversee the proper installation of car seats. Check out
buckleupnc.com for more info.
According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, children are five times safer riding rear-facing than forward-facing. For best protection children should stay rear-facing until they outgrow the rear-facing seat based on weight or height. At a minimum, children should stay rear-facing until at least age 2.
The
“Saved by the Belt” initiative raises awareness about the importance of everyone buckling up by highlighting people who avoided serious injury or death in a motor vehicle crash by wearing their seatbelt.
Share your “Saved by the Belt” stories to raise awareness, and follow us @NCGHSP on Facebook and @NC_GHSP on Twitter and Instagram. For more information, visit www.ncghsp.org.