City of Panama City Beach issued the following announcement on November 1.
The Panama City Beach Police Department has established a car seat safety program, with two patrol officers newly certified as Child Passenger Safety Technicians through the Safe Kids program.
Officers Sidnie Gulley and Shy'Keya Wimberly received extensive training in the proper installation of the seats -- quite a task considering there are so many different brands and models being used by parents today, including some which might have been recalled.
"That's one of the first things we do when installing a car seat is make sure it hasn't been recalled by the manufacturer," said Wimberly.
The first Car Seat Safety Day is set for Thursday, Nov. 18 at Frank Brown Park. Those who wish to participate can register here for one of the time slots. The event is from 8-11 a.m. and from Noon-5 p.m. Each car seat installation and training takes about 25 minutes.
Car Seat Safety Days will be held each quarter and will be advertised via social media.
According to Safe Kids, the best way to keep your child safe in the car is to use the right car seat in the right way. Car seats should be age appropriate and installed correctly to prevent injury. Here are a few statistics to keep in mind when it comes to child safety:
- Road injuries are the leading cause of preventable deaths and injuries to children in the United States.
- Correctly used child safety seats can reduce the risk of death by as much as 71 percent.
- More than half of car seats are not used or installed correctly.
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