According to the US Census Bureau for 2005 1 there are approximately 20,267,176 children under 5 years old and 35,083,508 households with own children under 18. The average household size is 2.6 and the average family size is 3.18. The Safety TagTM has a large market in which it can help prevent injury to children.
Motor vehicle injury is the leading cause of death among children and approximately 214,000 children under the age of 14 were injured in a vehicle crash 2,3. Aggressive driving – such as speeding, excessive lane changing, following too close and running red lights – was associated with 1/3 of traffic crashes and 2/3 of fatal crashes 4 . This is precisely why the Safety TagTM was created, in hopes that aggressive drivers will be more cautious around cars that have children in them…and in turn reduce the death and injury rates that occur every day harming our children.
The other intended use of the Safety TagTM is to adhere to the entryway window of a home or apartment to alert emergency personnel to not only be aware that a child resides in the home, but to be on the lookout for the child(ren) when responding to an emergency at that residence.
In 2005, fire departments responded to 396,000 home fires in the United States. Local health departments worked with fire departments and community organizations to identify high risk homes. Homes that have residents of 5 years and younger are considered high-risk! Children under the age of 5 are twice as likely to die in a fire. Each year thousands of children are injured or killed in a home fire and 40% of them are under age 5 5 . Young children usually are very scared when an emergency happens and will sometimes hide. One story we heard was that a 4 year old child hid underneath his bed after a fire broke out in the home. Once the fire starts there is not much time before the house will become engulfed in flames. Anything to give the firefighters or other EMS personnel immediate notification that a child resides in the home is beneficial and can hopefully save a child from death or injury.
Cruisin’ With Kids is dedicated to help in the fight to keep kids safe! Our Safety Tag is just the beginning and we hope to have the opportunity to work with police, firefighters, emergency medical services, and other organizations that share the same mission to help prevent child injury and death.
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[1] US Census Bureau, 2005 American Community Survey, http://www.census.gov/, retrieved on November 27, 2006.
[2] US Centers for Disease Control, http://www.cdc.gov/ncipc/factsheets/childpas.htm, retrieved in November 27, 2006.
[3] US Centers for Disease Control, http://www.cdc.gov/ncipc/fact_book/07_Different.htm, retrieved in November 27, 2006.
[4] US Centers for Disease Control, http://www.cdc.gov/ncipc/fact_book/17_Motor Vehicle Crashes.htm, retrieved in November 27, 2006.
[5] National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/people/injury/airbags/MVOP2004/pages/FactaboutCandY.htm#ch7, retrieved on November 27, 2006. |
