Crook Co. SO joins seat belt, child safety seat ‘blitz’

The Crook County Sheriff’s Office is joining other Law Enforcement agencies across the state in a statewide safety belt and child car seat traffic enforcement “blitz’ from February 2-18. In addition to looking for proper safety belt use and child car seat use, deputies will also be on the alert for persons exceeding the speed limit, distracted driving or violating the “hands free” cellphone law.

This enhanced safety belt enforcement is provided through overtime funding from the USDOT’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

This enforcement focuses on proper use of safety belts and child restraints. Properly using safety belts and child restraints holds a person safely in place and inside the car to prevent injury from occurring during sudden stops, swerves or a crash. Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause nationwide of death for children ages one through twelve years old. Child seats may increase crash survival by 71% for infants under one year old and by up to 59% for toddlers aged one to four. Booster seats may reduce the chance of nonfatal injury among four to eight year olds by 45% compared to safety belts used alone.

Oregon law requires children weighing under forty pounds to use a child seat with harness. Children under one year or weighing less than twenty pounds must ride in a rear-facing child seat. A child over forty pounds must use either a child seat or booster until they reach age eight or 4′ 9″ tall and the adult belt fits them correctly. If you are unsure whether your child is ready to transition to an adult belt system, use the easy five-step test here: http://www.carseat.org/Boosters/630.htm

For help installing child car seats, consult the seat manufacturer’s instructions, your vehicle owner’s manual, or visit a local child seat fitting station listed at: http://www.nhtsa.gov/apps/cps/index.htm or at http://oregonimpact.org/car-seat-resources/

Product recalls related to your vehicle’s safety belt or your child’s safety seat is provided by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration at http://www.nhtsa.gov/ or check with the product manufacturer.

Statewide observations surveys in 2016 found 96% of Oregon travelers use safety belts or child car seats. This is significantly higher than the national average state use of 90%.