Official Newspaper of Eddy County since 1883
Official Newspaper of Eddy County since 1883
In the Lake Region area, 132 children are riding safer following participation in car safety seat checkups in 2023. These checkups were sponsored by many community volunteers from Lake Region District Health Unit, Foster County Public Health, Cavalier County Public Health, North Dakota Highway Patrol, Safe Kids Grand Forks, Early Childhood Tracking and the North Dakota Department of Health & Human Services. The checkups were held throughout several communities in the Lake Region throughout 2023. Shelley Aabrekke, a Child Passenger Technician with Lake Region District Health Unit, says she does these checkups because, “A parent may not realize that if one small part is not correct when installing the car seat or putting the child into the seat with the harness, it could mean the difference of life or death in the event of an accident.”
At the checkup, certified child passenger safety technicians assisted parents with the proper installation of the car seats and how to secure the child(ren) into the seats safely. Technicians reviewed the labels of car seats to ensure the restraint was appropriate for the child’s age, weight and height and also checked the seats for any recalls and the manufacturer’s expiration date.
Of the 132 restraints checked, only 29 were used correctly. Out of those 103 seats with errors, the most common mistakes were:
The harnesses used to secure the child(ren) in the car seats were too loose. The harness on a car seat is designed to fit snugly on the child’s body, without slack.
The tether was not used on forward-facing seats. The tether must be used if LATCH (Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children) is used as it is part of the system. If the seatbelt is used to keep the child's seat in place, it is highly recommended as it keeps the child’s head from moving so far forward in a crash.
Other errors included using non-regulated accessories attached to the car seat and vehicle protectors.
The North Dakota Department of Health & Human Services recommends the following “best practice” guidelines for child seat restraints.
Children should be kept rear-facing until at least age two.
After children outgrow their rear-facing car seat, keep children in forward-facing car seats with a harness until they reach the harness’s highest weight limit allowed by the manufacturer.
When children have outgrown the harness in their forward-facing seat, they may be moved to a booster. However, they should be at least 40 pounds and at least four years of age. Keep the child in the booster until the seat belt fits them correctly – usually about 4’9” tall.
Children can move to seat belt usage when it fits properly over their body. The lap and shoulder belt should be snug, with the lap belt placed across the upper thighs and the shoulder belt across the shoulder and chest. Shoulder belts should never be placed behind their back or under their arm.
Aabrekke says she finds her passion for being a Child Passenger Technician because “I know firsthand how important your car seat installed correctly can save your child’s life. My family was in a head-on-crash and I attribute my young son surviving that accident because he was in his car seat correctly. I want to help parents do everything possible to keep their child(ren) safe.” Parents can be on the lookout for 2024 car seat dates on LRDHU’s website, lrdhu.com, or their Facebook page or by calling one of the four LRDHU offices.
For more information, contact the Lake Region District Health Unit at (701) 662-7040 or the North Dakota Department of Health & Human Services at 1-800-472-2286.
