BACK TO SCHOOL SAFETY

September is the time when our kids (and maybe our partners) go back to school. Please help them get there Safely!

First, lets talk about CAR MAINTENANCE.

Keeping your car in good working order helps you maintain control in adverse driving conditions. Here's a checklist from the The National Safety Council (NSC) Defensive Driving Course of what to do when.

Please remember the following:

EVERYTIME outside before you drive, check the following:
Tires are not low or flat; tread is not worn away
Windshield wipers work; sufficient cleaning fluid in reservoir
No leaks under the car
Mirrors, directional signals, head, tail, and brake lights are clean and not broken

EVERYTIME inside before you drive, check the following:
All doors are fully closed and locked
Seat and head restraint comfortably adjusted
Driver and passengers correctly belted
Mirrors, vents, windows and heat/air properly adjusted
Gauges work and accurately reflect engine conditions
Driver is mentally and physically ready to drive

Please refer to the NSC's webpage for maintenance tips for more information.

Second, SEAT BELTS - Its a matter of life and death!

Used correctly, seatbelts save lives.

During a crash, properly fastened safety belts distribute the forces of rapid deceleration over larger and stronger parts of the person's body, such as the chest, hips and shoulders. The safety belt stretches slightly to slow your body down and to increase its stopping distance.

When a crash occurs, the car buckles and bends as it strikes an object and comes to an abrupt stop - in approximately one-tenth of a second! As the front end is crushed, it absorbs some of the force of the crash and cushions the rest of the car, resulting in the passenger compartment coming to a more gradual stop than the front end.

As the crash progresses, the car's occupants hit some part of the vehicle. At the moment of impact, unbelted occupants are still travelling at the vehicle's original speed and tend to move toward the point of impact, not away from it. Just after the vehicle comes to a complete stop, these unbelted occupants will slam into the steering wheel, the windshield, or some other part of the vehicle interior. Many serious injuries are also caused by unbelted occupants colliding with each other. People in the front seat are often struck by unbelted rear-seat passengers who have become high-speed projectiles

What's not obvious is that even after the occupant's body comes to a complete stop, the internal organs are still moving forward. Suddenly, these organs hit other organs or the skeletal system. This internal collision often causes serious or fatal injuries. And all this occurs within approximately one-tenth of a second!

Have a great, safe, return to school!