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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Friday, April 13, 2007

Eyes on the kids

By Loren Moreno
Advertiser Staff Writer

PROTECTING CHILDREN IN AND AROUND VEHICLES

The national organization Kids and Cars has identified several ways children get injured in and around cars. Here’s how to prevent accidents:

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CARS SET IN MOTION BY A CHILD

  • Keys should never be left within reach of children.

  • Make sure all children have left the car once it is parked.

  • Check that your car can't be inadvertently knocked into gear.

  • Teach children to never play inside cars.

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    KIDS LEFT IN CARS

  • Never leave a child alone in a car, even for a minute.

  • Call 911 if you see a child left alone inside a car.

  • Put your cell phone, bag, lunch or something else you need on the floor of the back seat. This will force you to always check the back seat of the car before leaving the car and locking the door.

  • Get in the habit of opening the back door when you reach a destination, making sure no child is left inside.

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    KIDS RUN OVER BY A VEHICLE

  • Walk around and behind the car before getting in and reversing.

  • Make sure children are in full view before moving the car, and that another adult is supervising them.

  • Teach children that parked vehicles might move and drivers might not see them.

  • Teach children to never play around cars.

  • Install cross-view mirrors, collision detectors, or another type of backup detection device.

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    LEARN MORE

    www.kidsandcars.org

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    As state Rep. Marilyn Lee was walking through her Mililani neighborhood, she noticed a toddler sleeping alone in a car while the child's parents played tennis nearby.

    That incident got the nurse and grandmother of two thinking that stricter laws were necessary to prevent tragedies such as the recent death of 3-year-old Sera Okutani, who died after she was left alone in a car for more than 1 1/2 hours last month.

    "People have to understand, when you're a parent, you have the responsibility for the care of someone who is helpless, and the responsibility to do everything you can to make sure they're safe," Lee said.

    For the past five years, Lee has been pushing to pass a law that would levy penalties against those who leave children alone in cars.

    A day before her bill was to be heard by the state Senate Transportation Committee last month, little Sera died, adding relevance and urgency to Lee's message.

    Last week, 1-year-old Maylani Piper-Caravalho, of Kailua, Kona, was killed when a sport utility vehicle ran over her while reversing in a driveway. And on March 8, 2-year-old Teysia Aku, of Punalu'u, was run over in a driveway by a reversing SUV and died.

    According to the state Department of Health, 13 children have died in such incidents since 1991. Two children in that same period have died after they were left unattended in cars.

    "That's 5 percent of all injury-related deaths for children in that age group. That's pretty high — almost one a year," said Dan Galanis, epidemiologist with the DOH Injury Prevention and Control Program.

    Accidents can be prevented, said Su Yates, director of Keiki Injury Prevention Coalition: Parents just need to take extra steps to ensure their child is accounted for at all times.

    Reach Loren Moreno at lmoreno@honoluluadvertiser.com.