MYRTLE BEACH, SC (WBTW) – It is National Child Passenger Safety week and the Myrtle Beach Fire Department will host a car seat check point today and Saturday.
Officials with the Myrtle Beach Fire Department will be at the Target in Myrtle Beach on Seaboard Street from 3 to 5 P.M. today to help you make sure your child’s car seat is as safe as possible.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, car seats can reduce the risk of deadly injury to an infant in a crash by more than 70 percent. However, Lieutenant Jonathan Evans with the Fire Department tells News13, the majority of car seats in the Palmetto State are installed incorrectly.
“Nine out of ten car seats are improperly installed in some way whether it’s a minor or major thing that’s going on there,” Evans said.”We just want to make sure people know how to use the seats and what the proper laws are here in South Carolina.”
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says the goal of a week dedicated to child passenger safety is to make sure all kids are in the right car seat, that it’s properly installed and registered with the manufacturer for safety updates.
Common mistakes parents make when using a car seat include twisted straps or using both a latch system and a seat belt.
“It used to be that at one year and 20 pounds you could switch to forward facing, but as they’ve done more studies, they’ve realized the longer the child stays rear-facing the better so now they’re saying two years and 40 pounds,” Evans said. “With that, every child is a little different. My daughter at a year and a half was pretty tall so she was ready kinda to turn around.”
For more about what size of car seat is right for your child, click here.
If you can’t make it to today’s check point, there will be another one on Saturday at the Walmart at 3620 Walton Drive in Myrtle Beachfrom 10 A.M. to noon.
