MILWAUKEE — Sad news out of Gary, Indiana, where we’ve learned a Milwaukee driver was struck by a semi carrying mail. A six-year-old girl in the car was killed in the crash. Indiana State Police say there were three people total in the car and none of them were in car seats.
In this Project Drive Safer report, we wanted to know the resources out there, to find affordable car seats and how to use them.
Showing parents how to make sure their child is in the right car seat and strapped in correctly, is Maisie Williams' full-time job at Children’s Wisconsin Hospital.
This includes a reminder that until a child is at least eight years old, 80 points, or at least 4’9” tall, they have to be in a car or booster seat. Williams says parents are often surprised. “All the time. They think that a booster is kind of done at 6," Williams said.
Children’s Wisconsin has an easy online calculator for parents to enter a child’s age, weight and height, to show which seat their child should be in.
She also shares that your child should never wear a puffy coat while buckled up. She strapped in a doll with and without a coat to show us there were several inches of room left, which could put the child at risk of being secure in a crash.
There are programs out there that can help make those car seats more affordable. You can do that by dialing 211.
John Hyatt, CEO of Impact 211, says there are community resource specialists ready to take your call 24/7/365 to help families in our viewing area find out if they qualify for a reduced-priced car seat through programs in the city they live in.
“If it's out there then we probably know about it and it's true of car seats,” said Hyatt.
This includes car seat programs in city health departments or area hospitals like Children’s.
“We can warm-transfer to their office,” said Hyatt. “Eliminate the chance that you might get busy and might not be able to find your way back.”
They can also connect you with car seat programs, like Safe Kids Wisconsin. The organization is a member of Safe Kids Worldwide, and is led by Children's Wisconsin. There are 16 locations in Milwaukee County and 20 others all across our state.
Children’s Wisconsin also warns families to beware of counterfeit car seats that do not meet U.S. safety standards. To avoid this, they say to always shop in stores, instead of online. If you must order online, they urge parents to purchase car seats directly from the manufacturer’s website.
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