Gov. Jim Justice proclaims this week as child passenger safety week

PARKERSBURG, W.Va. (WTAP) - Governor Jim Justice has proclaimed September 17-23 as Child Passenger Safety Week in West Virginia.

The proclamation was requested by the West Virginia Governor’s Highway Safety Program (GHSP), which is working in conjunction with the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) as part of the national observation for Child Passenger Safety Week. The week is dedicated to educating parents, grandparents, and caregivers about the importance of correctly choosing, installing, and using car seats, booster seats, and seat belts.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Traffic Safety Facts 2021 Data, of the 42,939 traffic fatalities in 2021 in the United States, 1,184 (3%) were children 14 and younger. And an average of 3 children were killed and an estimated 445 children were injured every day in traffic crashes in the United States.

“It’s important to make sure your child is in a proper car seat and that they’re properly installed and the child is properly fastened into them because car seats are designed to absorb the impact in the case of a crash. In order for them to work properly you would have to make sure they are properly installed and the child is placed safely,” said Sgt. Greg Britton of the Vienna Police Department.

Locally you can visit the Parkersburg PD and FD or Camden Clark to speak to car seat technicians about proper car seat usage.

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