The seat belt saves lives, but provided it is well used. In that case, because of its misuse, it became a trap that almost cost Samantha, a six-year-old girl after suffering a serious car accident with her father. The car got off the road and hit a tree at high speed.
The girl he wasn't in a car seat suitable for his age, I wasn't going anywhere really. He was in the back seat with the adult seat belt: the lower part located at the height of his abdomen, and the upper part placed behind his back. This caused that when hitting so brutally, the belt acted like a blade literally cutting the girl's abdomen in the middle to the point that her intestines were exposed.
They seem older, but they are not
He also suffered a concussion, fracture of a vertebra and numerous bruises. After two weeks in the ICU and one in the pediatric plant, the girl has been discharged, but they have serious physical and psychological consequences, and they believe she will still have to go through surgery again.
When children grow up We think that they are not so fragile and that nothing happens because once they do not go in their safety seats or if the chair is not completely well placed.
As Samantha's mother warns, "Don't think that just because your children are 7 or 8 years old are too old ... they are not!"
The importance of the car seat
Most likely, if the girl had used a safety retention system appropriate to her size and weight, the damage would not have been so severe. Children should always travel with a restraint system up to 12 years. From that age, as long as their height equals or exceeds 145 millimeters, they can use the adult seat belt.
Children weighing between 22 and 36 kg should go in a chair of the Group III: They must use a lifting cushion that is height adjustable and placed in front so that the vehicle belt can be worn over the clavicle and the child's hip. For these ages it is also safe to use special harnesses that are the perfect substitute for those of the car (they look like those of the racing drivers).
Why is a booster seat so important in children of this age? If the injured girl had used a safety chair, the seat belt well placed would have been located at the height of your hips and not your abdomen, preventing it from acting like a knife in the face of the strong impact. In addition, the upper part of the belt placed at the level of the clavicle, as it should be, would have protected it from suffering such a severe blow to the head.
The family asks for help through a Go FoundMe campaign to finance the recovery of their daughter.
Photos | Go FoundMe
Via | Daily Mail
In Babies and more | Both babies suffered the same car accident: the one who was in a back-up chair came out unharmed, the other suffered serious damage
