Summer is the season of fun in the sun for kids of all ages. But unfortunately, amusing children’s activities such as swimming, biking and playing outside can easily lead to injuries if proper safety rules aren’t followed. To help you keep your child smiling and injury-free this summer, we’d like to give you a few tips for preventing accidents:
- Know that kids and lawn mowers don’t mix – When it comes time to cut your grass, make sure your kids are out of the yard and being supervised by a responsible adult. Plus, never mow the lawn past dusk to ensure that you will be able to see any people or objects in your path. Taking these precautions will prevent lawn mower injuries, which can be extremely serious and may even require foot/ankle amputation.
- Shut the windows when children are around – Many people think that putting screens in windows will prevent children from falling out of them, but this isn’t true. To guarantee that youngsters won’t take a fall through a window in your home, you can either keep the windows closed or install window stops that prevent them from being opened more than four inches.
- Enjoy the water wisely – Swimming in open bodies of water such as oceans and lakes is a great time, but the water can be unpredictable and therefore very dangerous. Teach your child to swim parallel to the shore if caught in a rip current, and always have him/her wear a life vest in deep water or when boating.
- Require children to wear protective gear – Children should always wear a helmet and supportive shoes when participating in summer activities such as biking, scootering, rollerblading and skateboarding. For protection against brush burns, knee and elbow pads should also be worn.
- Teach your kids about traffic safety – Demonstrate how to properly obey pedestrian laws to your child by always using marked crosswalks and looking both ways before crossing a street. And if your child is younger than 10, never let him/her walk along or across roads without a trustworthy adult.
While out enjoying the beautiful weather this summer, your child will be at a much lower risk for sustaining an injury if he/she follows these suggestions.
Summertime Accident? Call Our Bucks County Child Injury Lawyer
In the event that your child is hurt or killed due to the negligence of another party, the Heslin Law Firm will be there for you. As a top-rated child injury attorney in Bucks County, our firm has over three decades of experience in dealing with drownings, dog bites and other personal injury cases. If you’d like to schedule a free consultation, call (215) 332-0300 or visit us on the web.
And for more summer safety advice, don’t miss our blog post on avoiding fire pit injuries. We look forward to showing you what makes us the child injury lawyer Bucks County residents can rely on.