Car seat safety event this Saturday in Harrisburg

Certified Technicians in Harrisburg Will Check Car Seats and Teach Car Seat Safety

DuQuoin, IL – Every day in America, too many children are riding in the wrong car seats or are completely unrestrained.  To help combat the issue, Illinois State Police Districts 13, 22 and local partners announced today they will conduct a car seat safety event Saturday, October 8, 2016 at the Glass Doctor in Harrisburg.  The Glass Doctor is located in front of Harrisburg Walmart at 714 Commercial Street, Harrisburg, IL.  Certified child passenger safety technicians will be on hand from 10:00 A.M. to 2:00 P.M. to check car seats for proper installation and educate parents and caregivers on how to choose the correct car seats and install them properly in their vehicles. 

Statistics show loving caregivers, through no fault of their own, install their kids' car seats INCORRECTLY 85 - 90% of the time. It takes Certified Car Seat Technicians 40 hours of training to learn how to install all of the hundreds of seats available into the hundreds of cars, all with different interfaces. No wonder parents struggle! The certified child passenger safety technicians working this event understand. They get it. And they are also MORE than glad to help!!!!

“Every 34 seconds a child under the age of 13 is involved in a crash,” said Illinois State Police Trooper Joey Watson.  “Using car seats that are age and size appropriate is the best way to keep your child safe.”  Furthermore, Trooper Watson added, “Even if kids are in the right seat, sometimes they are not buckled in correctly.  By attending the free car seat event at the Glass Doctor on October 8th, parents and caregivers can be sure their kids are riding as safely as possible in their vehicle.” 

NHTSA recommends keeping children rear-facing as long as possible up to the top height or weight allowed by their particular seats.  Once a child outgrows the rear-facing car seat, he/she is ready to travel in a forward-facing car seat with a harness.  After outgrowing their car seats, children should be placed in booster seats.  While Illinois law states a child must be in an appropriate car seat or booster seat until their eighth birthday, some eight year old children are not tall enough for the seat belt to fit them correctly.  These kids need to stay in a booster seat until they are taller—4’9” is the recommended height.

Remember: In Illinois, children are required to be in a car seat or booster seat until at least age 8 and all children younger than 13 should ride in the back seat.

For more information on Child Passenger Safety visit http://www.nhtsa.gov or www.buckleupillinois.org or www.safekids.org

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