# Why kids shouldn't ride in the front seat!!



## armyturner (Aug 31, 2007)

I had a pretty good scare yesterday when I came out of a briefing and had a message on my phone saying that my ex and my 2 kids had been in a car accident and were at the hospital on post. To make a long story short, she had let my 8 year old son sit up front and ended up in the accident. He had a pretty good bout with the airbag, but was only banged up a little and is going to be fine.

I hope that this picture is not too graphic, but I want everyone to see that the front seat IS NOT the place for a young child.


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## Rifleman1776 (Aug 31, 2007)

For clarification, please. Was he seat belted? In a child car seat properly installed? Or loose?
Hope he is all right soon, as is everyone.


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## mewell (Aug 31, 2007)

OW! Glad to hear he's OK.


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## Paul in OKC (Aug 31, 2007)

I hear that children under 12 should not ride in the front seat with air bags, unless you can turn them off. My daughter only rides in the front of my little work car, but it has no bags. Wouldn't let her ride in front in the last one because it had one that could not be turned off.
Glad they are ok.


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## smoky10 (Aug 31, 2007)

Jeremy, the wife and I are glad the injuries are not serious. Some times it takes a picture like that to open our eyes and put the kids in the back. Even with the injuries he's still a good looking young man.


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## GaryMGg (Aug 31, 2007)

Oh Ch*t was the first thing outta my mouth.
On second glance, it still doesn't look like a fun time but it appears he's not
hurt too badly considering. Of course, if he was in the back, he might have no
facial bruises at all -- and that's probably your point.
Sure hope he heals quickly and completely.


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## TheHeretic (Sep 1, 2007)

I have seen several people get in it with air bags.  All of them are prety much cut up like that.   I guess we are ok if its just bruising....   Anyhow.... when something inflats and deflates in less than a second or so you know that there is serious force there.  And 6 out of the eight Ihave seen were seat belted in.  so....

I do hope you son is alright.   I know that is not a good thing to hear.  I was on the road when my son broke his arm, not fun.   I know as a kid he will be fine in a couple of weeks so....  But for school he starts with some bruising.  God for the girls as they like the bad boy look and that looks like it.

Have a good one.


Dean
Columbus OH


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## Firefyter-emt (Sep 1, 2007)

Dang... that's a abrasion for sure!!  This is one of the things I REALLY like about the new generation airbags that will test the weight. I have these in my new company car and only 2 of my 4 children are big enough to turn the airbag on. The added bonus is that in a deployment of the drivers bag only it's a cost saving of close to a grand for the repair.

Most of that should be gone in a day or so, but there is a pretty good bruise there that's gonna be a lovley shade of purple with such fair skin like he has...

While on this topic, for children out of car seats, please use the center lap belt as a "last resort" As parents we are always told to put a car seat in the middle, which is fine, yet without the car seat, a lap belt only position is the most dangerous seat in the house. Worst call I went to was a fatal where the girl in the middle seat died where the rest of the family of 5 survived. Major internal injuries and head trama from hitting the center console with her head! Worse yet, are those freaking mornic "auto-matic" seat belts that NO ONE remembered to put on the lap belt by hand. Those would lock, and without the lap belt your lower torso would go under the dash stopped only by your neck caught by the seatbelt.

OK, sorry for my rant... Seen too many in my life (And don't get me started about "my brothers friends cousin" that would of been killed if he had a seat belt on!!)


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## gketell (Sep 1, 2007)

Jeremy,

I'm VERY happy your son and all your family are safe!!  And thank you for sharing the photo.  I will show it to my kids who keep begging to ride in the front seat.


FF-EMT,

I understand and agree with your position on seat belts but please don't slight those who have died because of them.  Yes, MY friend (direct, close friend, not friend of friend or further) is the statistical minority but he WAS killed by his seatbelt.  He hit black ice and slid sideways; the side of his car hit sideways into the side of a mobile home.  Car was driveable, mobile home was crinkled but no structural damage.  My friend had not a mark on him... except where the seatbelt crossed his neck as he went sideways.  He died of a broken neck.

I fully understand the value of a seat belt and wear mine always, as does everyone in my family.  My 9 and 11 year olds have become the seatbelt police if any of their friends try to "forget" to put it on in the car.  But there ARE cases where it is worse than not having it so don't discount all the stories out of hand.  Truthfully, only .000000000000000000000000001% of the accidents.  The other 99.9999999999999999% of the time the seat belts will save you.  If you like those odds, feel free to skip your seat belt.

GK


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## Firefyter-emt (Sep 1, 2007)

Don't get me wrong here.. I agree there are those cases where it may of killed someone from the seatbelt, although that is not to say they would of survived with it off either.  I just am amazed by people that don't wear one ever based on that one case where someone did die because of it. Thier case is strong as iron that this is why they will never ever wear one. Just amazes me, that's all..


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## gketell (Sep 1, 2007)

*shrug*

The dictator who advocates genocide.
The smoker who smokes after lung cancer surgery.
The estranged parent who decides the entire family is better off dead.
The stressed student who thinks the solution is a shooting rampage.

Sadly, I think it is safe to say that anyone can justify anything to themselves if they want to.

GK


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## NavyDiver (Sep 4, 2007)

That's one nasty bruise, but I'm glad that it wasn't any worse!


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## Rifleman1776 (Sep 4, 2007)

With reference to the entire thread and some of Fire Fighters comments. I was a news photographer for many years in the pre-seat belt days. I have seen, and photographed many (way too many) accidents where small children were propelled through the front windshield. Some left not much more than a messy wet spot on the pavement. In that sense, the boy in the picture here is very fortunate. I am a believer in seat belts.


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## alamocdc (Sep 4, 2007)

Jeremy, I'm very glad it wasn't worse. I'm equally glad that my new truck has the weight triggered passenger bag for the same reason. My old truck had the type that you had to turn on or off with the key. I was usually alone so I left if off by default. The problem is that I almost always forgot to turn it on when LOML was with me. [:I] Thankfully, it was never needed.


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## woodwish (Sep 4, 2007)

Jeremy, glad your son is going to be OK and it drives the point home that kids belong in the back seat,  Heck, my daughter even makes her lab sit in the back seat with her seat belt on (yes, they make doggy seat belts) when traveling.

Another thing some folks should think about if you have one of those small pickups (Ranger size) with the extended cab is those sideways rear seats.  A good friend of mine in the Tampa area, another teacher and woodcarver, had his 7-year old securely bucked in the back during a minor accident.  The accident was a low speed head-on in the mall parking lot, so slow the air bags did not even go off.  He got out to check the other car and then went back to tell his daughter to get out while they waited for the police and realized she was not responding.  They never revived her.  Turns out she died of a broken neck from sitting sideways when hit, our necks just don't have enough side muscles to hold up in even a minor accident.  He was devastated as you can imagine.  He knew Ihad the same truck and 2 daughters about the same age that rode with me daily, and called me the night of accident long distance.  He begged me to get rid of the truck so the next day I traded it for a full-size F-150, and drove it to her funeral a few days later.  These full size trucks suck gas but I don't care, won't ever go back to a smaller vehicle even though my daughters are now 20 & 22.  They also drive full size SUV's, none of us are comfortable in anything smaller.


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## TellicoTurning (Sep 4, 2007)

Jeremy,
I hope it just looks worse than it really is.. he'll have a story to tell at school.. along with a pretty good shiner.


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