Hicksville, NY - September 18th, 2013 - Nassau County Executive Mangano announced today that the County will conduct a free child safety seat check-up event on Saturday, September 21st at the Nassau County Child Safety Fitting Station – located at 170 Cantiague Rock Road in Hicksville. Certified child passenger safety technicians will be on hand from 10:00am to 2:00pm to inspect car seats for proper installation and advise parents and caregivers on how to choose the right car seats and install them properly into their vehicles. The event, which is free to the public, is part of Nassau County’s participation in a statewide effort during National Child Passenger Safety Week (Sept. 15-21) and National Seat Check Saturday to improve the safety of New York’s children.
Based on U.S. Department of Transportation, National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) crash data in 2011, on average, nearly 2 children under 13 were killed and 338 were injured every day while riding in cars, SUVs, pickups and vans. In 2011, over one- third of children killed in car crashes were not in car seats or wearing seat belts. In New York State, nearly 8,500 children from birth to 15 years of age are treated yearly in hospitals for injuries from a motor vehicle crash.
According to NHTSA, three out of every four car seats are not used correctly. Failure to read and carefully follow the installation instructions included with the car seat as well as those in the vehicle owner's manual can lead to incorrect installation, exposing a child passenger to grave risk of serious injury or death in a crash.
“Know for Sure Your Child is in the Right Seat” is a national campaign launched by NHTSA and the Ad Council to make sure all parents and caregivers are properly securing their children (birth-12 years) in the right car restraint (rear-facing, forward-facing, booster seats and seat belts) for their age and size, to ensure they are properly used and installed by parents and caregivers.
“You can never predict or control what other drivers might do or how the weather might change the safety of a roadway,” said County Executive Mangano. “The best way to “know for sure” your kids are safe is to put them in the right car seats for their age and size and to use those seats correctly on every trip. By attending Nassau County Traffic Safety’s car seat event during National Child Passenger Safety Week, parents and caregivers can feel confident their kids are riding as safely as possible.”
Parents and caregivers can also attend car seat inspections or check-up events held throughout the year at the fitting station. For more information about child passenger safety, and to make an appointment to have your seat checked, contact Traffic Safety at 516-571-9664.