Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
The tragic death of an 18-month-old Utah boy this week is a reminder of how quickly accidents can happen. The boy was killed when a TV fell on top of him earlier this week.
Today, we visited the RC Willey in Murray with the Salt Lake Valley Health Department to see what parents can do to get rid of common hazards at home. SLVHD's Kathy Chambers says the hazards can be found in every room of the house, starting anywhere there's a bookshelf. [Click here to print off a room-by-room safety checklist for your home]
"They see a toy up here or something, a vase they want to get, they start climbing up here and what happens is their body makes the shelves top heavy so it will tip over on them," Chambers explained. To stay safe, she says you should attach the bookshelf to the wall so it doesn't come loose.
A tablecloth on your kitchen table is another hidden hazard. "Sometimes a child will want to see what's on top of the table, or they'll pull themselves up, they'll start pulling on the table cloth. And without even knowing something heavy is up there, it's going to come down on their head," Chambers said.
The simple tip with the table: If you're going to have a tablecloth, don't put anything heavy on the table.
The heavy lids on toy chests are another hazard if they don't have a mechanism that stops the lid from falling. "[A] child could be playing in the chest, and it can fall right on their heads, and could break their necks, crush their skulls," Chambers said.
Last but not least, televisions -- especially those that are thick and wide. "They need to keep it on furniture low to the ground," Chambers said.
She also suggests keeping remote controls, or anything a child might go for, far away. "There's consequences if they climb. Put them in time out, take their favorite toy away. It's easier than burying them," she said.
Chambers says the real key is supervision and teaching kids it's never OK to climb on furniture.
E-mail: corton@ksl.com
