Winter can be a time that many adults consider dangerous. Aside from the normal safety concerns, there are many additional dangers added with the freezing temperatures and possibly icy conditions winter brings. Parents are often concerned their children stay safe while they play outside and families have to be careful when encouraging winter activities.

Head Injuries

One of the most common injuries in sledding is serious injuries to the head. In fact, 30% of children who have to be hospitalized from a sledding injury were found to have a serious head injury. Of those who sustained a head injury from their accident, 10% were permanently disabled in some way.

Parents often think sledding is fairly harmless fun, but it can be dangerous when the participants are not following careful rules of safety. It is very important that best family divorce attorney connecticut stress safety measures to their kids to keep them protected from the cold and other hazards that might cause a safety concern.

Proper Gear

Parents and experts are now encouraging the use of protective head gear during sledding. Children who are sledding in helmets are less likely to sustain head injuries even if they hit something on accident. Helmets can also protect children who are accidentally hit by other sleds, even when there are no obstacles in the area.

Pay Attention

It is very important that all children and adults pay attention whenever they are in an area with sleds. Even bystanders have been hit by sleds that have gone off-course or gotten out of control. Head and other injuries can result from crashes where one party (or both) are not paying attention as they walk up a hill, stand near a slope or are sledding down a hill before the path is completely clear of other participants.


 

Motorized Vehicles

Sometimes adults believe speeding up sleds would be a fun activity during sledding. When no hills are in sight (or even if they are), an adult might offer to tie a sled to a car, truck, SUV or ATV and pull it along a back road or other path. This is extremely dangerous and should never be done. Officials and experts warn parents to never allow a sled to be pulled behind a motorized vehicle of any kind.

When an Accident Happens

When a child is injured in a sledding accident, more serious legal action might be required. Parents who are negligent might need to be faced with stiffer penalties and the concerned parent might be seeking full custody with the help of the best family divorce attorney in Connecticut to keep their children in a safe environment.