An open window to you means fresh air or a cool breeze on a hot day. To a child, it’s a portal to adventure. Unfortunately, that adventure can end with a thudding injury. When school gets out for summer, swimming pools and playgrounds open, backyard play equipment goes up, barbecue grills roll out — the sad side effect is that children’s injuries increase.
Kids want fresh air, play companions and exercise. But every year, hospital ERs treat more than 200,000 kids in for playground-related injuries. So it’s important for parents to make sure that dangerous circumstances and careless behavior don’t put the kibosh on kids’ fun.
Kids are active and often exhibit poor judgment. They don’t anticipate dangerous situations. They don’t always gauge distances properly. Older ones push their limits on the play equipment. This makes it important for an adult to keep them in check.
Children love to climb. While climbing trees or playing on swings, slides, monkey bars, merry-go-rounds and teeter-totters, children may fall. They slip, lose their grip, miscalculate, lose their balance or ignore dangerous situations. Often, kids fracture an elbow trying to stop a fall with an outstretched arm. Broken elbows are the more common breaks and require an operation.
Poorly maintained playground equipment and swings are a frequent cause of damage. So make sure surfaces under playground equipment are safe, soft, and well-maintained. Playground surfaces should be padded with wood chips, mulch, shredded tires or sand, rather than dirt and grass. And all play structures need to be a very far distance from any overhead power lines.
Climbing trees in the yard can be more dangerous than home playground equipment, because trees can hide dangerous electrical wires. If your neighborhood has trees concealing power lines, it’s good to make those trees off-limits for climbing, because accidentally grabbing the wire may be fatal to a child. Also, caution kids about playing on the green electrical boxes in neighborhood for the same high-voltage reason. Many of these green boxes are pad-mounted transformers that carry the same dangers as the common transformers we see hanging on high on power poles. Don’t allow kids to sit on or play around this electrical equipment.
At Clark Public Utilities, we often encourage open windows to help keep homes cool and lower electric bills during the hot season. But it’s important to always keep safety the top priority. To prevent falls at home, it’s simple to install safety devices, such as guards for windows above ground level, stair gates and guardrails for patios and decks. These devices help keep quick-moving, active children from taking a damaging tumble.
Outdoor grills are great for summer cooking and can help keep electric use down and homes cooler. But they can be dangerous to children playing near them. Caution your children to keep away from the grill to avoid any blistering burns.
Childhood injuries, like many childhood diseases, are often preventable. Unfortunately, appropriately padded playgrounds, protective equipment and carefully chosen play equipment aren’t always enough. The bottom line for children’s safe summer fun is parental guidance and supervision. Parents and grandparents should instruct children about common dangers and teach them the proper use of equipment — then keep an eye out during playtime. Whether at home, at parks or on vacation, safeguard your children by steering them away from dangerous areas and unsafe equipment, and by reminding them to look up and stay clear of power lines and electrical equipment.
Energy Adviser is written by Clark Public Utilities. Send questions to ecod@clarkpud.com or to Energy Adviser, c/o Clark Public Utilities, P.O. Box 8900, Vancouver, WA 98668.
