Product News

Spa and Hot Tub Covers

Built-in Car Seats

Baby Walkers Still Dangerous

Shopping Cart Safety Program

Campaigns Launched to Stop Products

Air Bag Safety Guidelines

Life Saver What's News - Child Safety and Baby Protection Updates

Local News Incidents

Read of the new bill being made to protect your children! Click here!

November 9, 1998

PORT ST. LUCIE - A 6-month-old boy was in critical condition Sunday night after spending more than 10 minutes under water in a backyard pool.

Brett Bourne, son of Chrissy and James Bourne of 2081 Buttonwood Drive, was found in the pool about 3:30 p.m., said Port St. Lucie police Cmdr. Chuck Johnson.

Chrissy Bourne reportedly took Brett out of his car seat and placed him in a room with his siblings to play. He apparently crawled out of the house through a sliding door and fell into the pool. He was found by his mother about 10 minutes later. She called emergency services, who transported him to the Port St. Lucie Medical Center.

Brett was airlifted to Palms West Hospital in Palm Beach County. Police are treating the incident as an accident, Johnson said.

Continuation of this tragic story..

November 11, 1998

PORT ST. LUCIE - A 6-month-old baby who fell into the family swimming pool Saturday died Tuesday at Palms West Hospital in Wellington.

Bret Bourne apparently crawled out of the house, past an open safety gate and into the pool while his mother slept on the couch and his father worked on a computer in another room, police said.

He had been in the pool at least 10 minutes when his mother found him, police said.

Port St. Lucie police classified the drowning as an accident, Cmdr. Chuck Johnson said, but final determination will be made after an autopsy.

Product News

Spa and Hot Tub Suction Covers

 Two cases recently in the news, one involving a 16-year-old New Jersey girl who drowned when the suction from a public spa drain held her underwater. The other was a child who sat on an uncovered wading pool suction drain leading to his intestines being torn from his body. These incidents graphically illustrate the hazards associated with spa drains. Parents should check the suction or drain cover on their home spa to be sure it is not missing or broken. Older units may not comply with the current safety standards.

MINIPOOL-SPA FLOOR The Minipool Spa Floor is a high-impact ABS plastic floor that is custom cut to fit into your in-ground spa. The floor is easily inserted and removed by one adult and rests on the seat of the spa, creating a shallow wading pool for kids and blocking access to the spa drain. The spa is fully functional with the floor in place. It can be cut to fit most any shape spa, including steps, bi-levels and fountains.

Parents Panic with Built-in Car Seats

 Chrysler recently sent 150,000 videos to customers with child seats after concerns about possible malfunction in the retractor device causing children to be trapped in place. Several parents reported having to cut their children out of the seats with scissors. In 1995, Chrysler advised customers to bring in about 5,000 built-in child seats on their 1996 minivans to have an improved retractor mechanism installed.

Baby Walkers Still Dangerous

 The dangers of baby walkers are back in the news again. Warnings and awareness are beginning to make copy for prime time national reporting. A number of manufacturers are already in the process of redesigning walkers to be wider than a standard doorway that is 36-inches wide. This would prevent the majority of the injuries that occur when unsupervised infants and toddlers fall down stairways in the walkers. It still does not address the problem of head injuries that result from running into tables and other head height pieces of furniture. A toddler in a walker can reach speeds of up to 10 miles per hour on a hard surface. If that glass dining room table is at head height, eventually there is going to be an "accident".

 Despite repeated warnings to parents, an estimated 25,000 injuries are treated in hospitals annually and over 3 million walkers are sold each year.

Shopping Cart Safety Program Launched to Reduce Childhood Injuries

To help parents and caregivers prevent unintentional childhood injuries associated with falls from shopping carts; the US Consumer Product Safety Commission announced a national shopping cart safety program. Over an 10 year period, an annual average of 12,000 children, ages five and under, were treated in hospital emergency rooms as a result of falls from shopping carts. The national campaign emphasizes parental awareness and supervision. In addition, the nationwide effort will provide families with information and the safety gear necessary to reduce the number of falls from shopping carts.

CPSC Launches Campaign to Rid Homes of Hazardous Products April 17, 1997

 Despite recall notices and public warnings, the Consumer Product Safety Commission has found that many products with the potential to seriously injure or kill a child are still in use. Public awareness has become the agenda of today. CPSC has launched an ambitious safety campaign. They are starting their campaign with public service announcements to television stations nationally.   

Air Bag Safety Guidelines

 All children under age 13 should ride in the back seat.

 Read your vehicle manual for the proper way to install a child safety seat for your particular vehicle.

 Children up to age one and 20 pounds should ride in a rear-facing car seat, semi-reclined, in the back seat. Never place a rear-facing infant seat in the front seat. If the car does not have a back seat, consider contacting the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration for permission to have your passenger side air bag disabled.

 Children 20-40 pounds can ride in an upright, forward facing seat, with the harness tightened to one finger width of space.

 Children from 40-80 pounds should ride in a properly installed booster seat with shoulder and lap belts.