Although we hope this never happens to you, it is important to know how to keep yourself safe in the event that you are attacked by a dog. This is crucial, especially since dogs bite almost 5 million Americans a year, and almost a million of those people seek medical treatment. In fact, almost 400,000 of those victims have such bad injuries that they require immediate attention in the emergency room.
Gearing Up For Hunting Season!
As we reported earlier this year, this past year, 2015, was one of the safest hunting seasons on record for Pennsylvanians. One article investigated why that might be so we can continue this trend! Pennsylvanians are taking a great deal of care in how they are training our state's youth. In fact, no 2015 hunting accidents involved a child who was participating in the state's Mentored Youth Hunting Program. This program works with hunters under 12 years of age to hunt certain species if they are with a licensed adult. Over 30,000 of these special youth permits were issued in the past year. Other protective factors for our state's hunters included requiring hunters to wear orange in season, as well as continued hunter safety education efforts. The article, the link to which can be found at the end of this article, also notes that hunting related accidents in PA have reduced by nearly 80% since hunter-trapper education training began in 1959.
Tractor-Trailers Can Cause Big Problems on Highways
Recently, a terrible accident occurred on I-81 in Pennsylvania that involved a motorcycle driver and a tractor-trailer. The motorcycle driver crashed when a blanket got stuck into his back wheel, then was hit when multiple tractor-trailers consequently ran over him. The driver was thrown from his cycle, where he was hit by the large oncoming trucks. According to reports, none of the tractor-trailers drivers stopped to help or investigate the accident. State police are still looking for the drivers.
Common Summertime Hazards--Did You Expect These?
In continuing on prior blog posts, it is important to be aware of the unique dangers and hazards that the summer weather can bring. Some of them might be familiar to you, such as drowning, heat strokes, and bike accidents. However, did you expect to see fireworks, food poisoning, and playground injuries to be among the list of top summertime hazards? All of these accidents possess potentially painful, serious, and/or life-threatening injuries. If they are caused at the fault of another person, it may be time to seek legal counsel.
Bite Prevention: Keeping Your Dog From Harming Others
Often, we hear about the victims' sides in terms of dog bite cases. However, what can owners do to prevent their dogs from biting other dogs or people? Take a look at these tips below, courtesy of HumaneSociety.org:
Avoid Accidents While Camping This Summer
Are you planning on camping and experiencing one of our state's great parks this summer? If so, there are a few apps that you can put on your phone or tablet to make camping easier, more enjoyable, and safer! Check out the list, provided by GoErie.com (http://www.goerie.com/
PA Carseat Laws Are Changing!
Attention to Pennsylvanians with young children! According to various news reports, children under the age of two who have not yet grown out of manufacturer's weight limits will have to be buckled into the backseat of the car in a rear-facing child car seat. These regulations are common sense to many parents, but now have officially been signed into law that will take effect THIS WEEK! According to news sources, for the first year, officers enforcing it will hand out verbal warnings. After the first year, car seat violations will face a $75 fine plus other costs and fees to the total of $125.
What To Do After A Bike Accident
So you've been in a bike crash. It's scary, disorienting, and you're not sure what to do next. What are some good steps to take post-crash? Take a look at these tips:
Six PA State Parks Make List of Great Family Parks!
We all know that our state of Pennsylvania is beautiful and offers a huge range of outdoor adventure opportunities, especially in the summer! We have so many great natural parks in our state, which includes many lakes that allow for fishing, boating, kayaking, and canoeing. Recently, six of our state's parks made the list of "Top 100 Family Friendly Places to Fish and Boat", including two in our area! Keystone State Park in Pittsburgh and Bald Eagle State Park near Bellefonte both made the list.
Prevent Boating Accidents With These Simple Tips
Are you being safe this boating season? GoErie.com wrote an article highlighting Pennsylvania's history of boating accidents and how we can prevent them! In 2015, there were 52 total boating accidents, 4 of which were fatal. Alcohol was a major factor in three of the accidents. Most of the boating accidents from last year involved collisions with other boating vehicles and/or fixed objects, flooding/swamping and grounding. Many of the accidents were the result of operator inattention, inexperience, improper lookout, failure of boating machinery, and excessive speed.
Malfunctioning Light Shocks Young Girl In Pool
Unfortunately, accidents do happen. Sometimes, these accidents occur as a result of equipment that has malfunctioned. Once such incident occurred recently in Mechanicsburg, PA. A young girl was swimming in a pool earlier this summer when the pool lights turned on and malfunctioned, causing her to suffer electric shock. Her family, who was quick to come to her aid, alerted first responders who came and had to resuscitate the child. Other children who were swimming in the pool did not suffer as much of a shock, which police believe may be due to the fact that the injured girl may have been grounded by a metal ladder. At the time of the news article, the child was in critical care in an area hospital and we send out best wishes out to her.
Fatal Bicycle Accident Back In News
Recently, newspapers reported that charges have been filed against a man who killed Pittsburgh woman while she was out riding her bike six months earlier. According to reports, the driver who caused the accident that killed the biker was speeding at the time and did not hit his brakes upon approaching a red light. The car then rammed into another car that was stopped at the light, which consequently hit and killed the biker. The police report notes that, as a result of the chain reaction of cars being bumped forward at the stoplight, the biker was pinned between two cars and subsequently passed away. Investigators note that the driver who caused the collision was likely high on drugs at the time.
Pedestrian Accidents Can Happen When You Least Expect Them
Unfortunately, The Post-Gazette recently ran a story about an area teen who was killed while he was walking home from his prom afterparty when he was killed by a driver. According to reports, the driver did not negotiate a curve properly and drove off the road, hitting and killing the young man who was walking home. Alcohol may have played a factor in this accident. The driver fled the scene and was later taken into custody.
Just How Common Are Nursing Home Falls?
The possibility that a resident of a nursing home may fall is a very real, serious danger. Every year approximately 1,800 senior citizens living in nursing homes die from fall-related injuries. To illustrate this point a little further, the CDC has compiled numbers that are shocking, to say the least. Only about 5% of adults 65 or older live in a nursing home, but nursing home residents account for about 20% of deaths from falls in this age group. A resident in a nursing home typically falls more than once, with the average resident having about 2.6 falls per year.
