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Airbags Are Very Risky For Children: How To Keep Them Safe In Airbag-Equipped Cars

airbags kerala child accident

Airbags are one of the first things that come to our minds when we think of passenger vehicle safety. Many of us are in that stage of life when we go to the extent of choosing cars based on the number of airbags offered. However, airbags alone cannot guarantee safety, or worse, can be dangerous if implemented incorrectly. A recent incident from Kerala has sparked discussions on how airbags could affect child safety.

Airbags Are Very Risky For Children: How To Keep Them Safe In Airbag-Equipped Cars

The Context

A horrific recent car crash in Kerala resulted in the death of a two-year-old. The kid was seated on its mother’s lap, in the front seat (co-driver seat) at the time of the crash. The car collided with a truck (a tanker), and airbags were deployed instantly.

The four other occupants survived the crash with minor injuries while the kid lost her life! How? The kid was seated on its mother’s lap. when the airbags deployed, the passenger airbag pressed against her face, suffocating her to death.

Airbags Are Very Risky For Children: How To Keep Them Safe In Airbag-Equipped Cars

This incident reminds us of the dire need to address and ensure infant safety. Many of you might not even be aware of the importance of child seats or know the proper way of making your kid travel.

Airbags Are Very Risky For Children: How To Keep Them Safe In Airbag-Equipped Cars

The Right Way To Travel With Your Kid

Driving around with a kid/ toddler is something that’s done with layers of careful planning and caution in first-world countries. In India, however, the max we can hope to find often is investing in ‘Baby on board’ warning signs on the car. We are fairly new to the concept of child seats. In this section on ‘how to drive around safely with your kid?’, the child seat is where we would start our conversation.

Investing in a good-quality child seat is probably the most important thing in ensuring child safety. Choosing the right baby car seat can be tricky. You will need to make the choice based on your kid’s physique, weight and age. This means that you might need to invest in more than one car seats over time. You should use child seats till your kid is old enough to use the seatbelts safely.

Airbags Are Very Risky For Children: How To Keep Them Safe In Airbag-Equipped Cars

A baby car seat would generally sit on the regular seat, and be attached firmly to it using anchorages. Special mounts -ISOFIX- are used for this purpose. These are found on the second-row seats of most cars and SUVs today. Installing the seat is easy and can usually be done by the car owner.

While choosing the perfect car seat for your baby, consider the nature of materials used, quality, and nature and comfort offered by the upholstery. You can choose a summer and winter padded reducer for added comfort. Make sure the seat has a side safety system, that will be of use in the event of a lateral impact. Many companies currently sell child seats in India. Brands like Chicco and Britax are giants in this space.

Next, NEVER mount the baby seat or make the baby sit against an airbag. Usually, ISOFIX mounts are seen on the rear seats due to this reason. The rear occupants do not have an airbag popping against them anyhow. Thus, it would be safe for the child to be seated there, on the baby seat. Strictly no front seats for the kid, especially with a rear-facing child seat.

There are car seats available which can be converted to accommodate kids through various stages of growth- from infancy through kindergarten. Investing in one of these might be a smart move for many.

If you are a mother, train yourself to accept the fact that your kid is safer on a child seat, belted up, than on your lap, wrapped in your arms. In India, people sometimes think with their hearts and fail to accept this.

To top it off, always have a ‘Baby onboard’ or ‘Toddler onboard’ warning label on your vehicle, so that other vehicles and their drivers stay notified of the same.

Summing It Up

Around 19 people die in road accidents in our country, every hour! It is thus our responsibility to ensure the safety of our kids and family. Practice safety and drive responsible.