Air Bags Are Not Softies

AIR bags have saved lives. But an infant or child riding in the front seat can be seriously hurt or killed by an inflating air bag. Many associate an air bag as something soft. But this is not so. For an air bag to be really effective in an emergency, it has to come out very fast. The force with which it operates can injure people who are too close to it.

You can prevent injuries to adults and children by heeding these safety tips:

• Infants in rear-facing child safety seats must never ride in the front seat of a vehicle that has a passenger air bag
• Children aged 12 and under should ride with their seatbelts on in the rear seat. They should use child safety seats or safety belts appropriate for their age and size
• All passengers must wear their seatbelts no matter how long or short the trip. Driver and front passenger seats should be moved as far back from the dashboard as possible without hindering your driving
• Infants under a year old must ride facing the rear of the car in the rear seat
• If a baby needs special attention all the time, ask another adult to ride with the baby in the back seat
• Read your vehicle owner's manual carefully on the instructions provided on air bags and child safety seat use

If there is no rear seat such as in sports cars and bakkies, and no air bag shut-off switch, a child is at risk from a passenger air bag. Some newly manufactured pick-ups have switches to shut off the passenger air bag. Turning off the switch is the best way to protect an infant riding in a rear-facing safety seat, or an older child using a safety seat or seat belt.

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