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SALT LAKE CITY -- Every year in Utah, more than 50 children are injured when a car rolls over them. Child advocates say even with technology, such as backup cameras and extra-wide mirrors, parents can never be too cautious. They say nothing is more effective than walking around your car, and it takes just seconds.
"Really, this height, to not be able to see from this far down is very dangerous, so this incredibly opens up the view," says Groll.
Every six days a Utah child is run over in a driveway or parking lot. -Primary Children's Medical Center
Cherie Groll uses her wide-angle mirror every time she backs her van out of the garage. Janet Brooks is a child advocacy manager at Primary Children's Medical Center. She says mirrors and backup cameras can be helpful. The best way to prevent child backovers is to walk around the car before you get in; a message Brooks promotes with the Spot the Tot Campaign.
"This is something we see recurring over and over again, and it's something we know we can prevent with all of us working together," says Brooks.
In just the past couple months, there have been three incidents.
Sunday night, a 2-year-old boy in Sandy was killed when his father backed out in a pickup truck.
Brooks says tragedies like this happen so fast, but they can be prevented with supervision.
"When this occurs it is a devastating event, not only for the child, but for the driver and family."
E-Mail: aforester@ksl.com
