43
Community event stresses bicycle safety
Photo
Neighbors | Shaiyla Hakeem .Austintown residents Chris Mendez (front left), Sharismar Mendez, Tayrismar Mendez, Joarismar Mendez, Kenneth Sierra; (back) Joaquin Mendez and Alex Sierra enjoyed free ice cream while learning about bicycle safety June 26.
Photo
Neighbors | Shaiyla Hakeem .Canfield's Matthew Tamaino (left), Dominic Tamaino and Johnny Tamaino came out June 26 to learn about bike safety and enjoy cool treats. The event also featured a free child car seat check.
Photo
Neighbors | Shaiyla Hakeem .Safe Kids Coalition volunteer Tracy Styka fitted Youngstown's Jordan Velez for a bike helmet. Free helmets and T-shirts were given out at the bicycle safety and car seat check event June 26.
Photo
Neighbors | Shaiyla Hakeem .Austintown residents Chris Mendez (front left), Sharismar Mendez, Tayrismar Mendez, Joarismar Mendez, Kenneth Sierra; (back) Joaquin Mendez and Alex Sierra enjoyed free ice cream while learning about bicycle safety June 26.
Photo
Neighbors | Shaiyla Hakeem .Youngstown's Jordan Velez (left) and Austintown's Natalia Novicky learned about the different traffic signs from Austintown police officers during a bicycle safety event at Greenwood Hummer on Mahoning Avenue.
BY SHAIYLA HAKEEM
Bicycle helmets may not be a fashion trend, but they can protect from potential head injuries.
The Austintown Police Department, in collaboration with AAA, Drug Education Officers of the Mahoning Valley and Greenwood Hummer, hosted a bike safety and child car seat check event June 26 in Greenwood’s parking lot.
Though there are bike safety classes given each summer in Austintown, this was the first community bicycle safety event.
Austintown police officer Jeff Toth helped organize the event. He said kids may wear helmets more if they understand why they are important. A community event was a way to keep young riders safe, even those who don’t reside in Austintown.
“We have a problem with kids not wearing helmets,” Toth said.
The safety course was open to the public and free of charge. Each child was fitted for and received a free bicycle helmet and T-shirt. Once they received their helmet, they were required to wear it throughout the training.
The event was targeted for kindergartners through third-graders. Each child was given a bike to ride and led through a course filled with traffic signs and orange cones. The meanings of the signs were explained and kids were shown exactly what to do when they encounter them.
Officers said some kids get confused with the difference between a yield sign and a stop sign and are unsure of what one way means. The bicycle course focused on these areas and kids were able to practice reacting to the signs.
Helping lead bike riders through the course was Austintown’s Ryan Gaulier. He said wearing a helmet is important because the head houses an important body organ — the brain.
“A child’s development starts in the brain,” Gaulier explained. “If they damage that, it will cause all kinds of problems and we don’t want that.”
In addition to wearing a helmet and understanding traffic signs, staying away from dangerous areas was also communicated to the young riders. Operation Lifesaver representative David Chafullo warned children of the dangers of railroad crossings. He gave away coloring sheets that displayed messages about railroad safety.
“Every 90 seconds there is an incident involving a pedestrian and a train,” Chafullo said. “If I can put it in their mind to stay away from railroad tracks, hopefully they will.”
A free car seat check was available at the event. Bicycle safety participants were treated to free ice cream after their completion of the course.
The importance of safety will continue to be explored through the summer. Austintown police will host a summer safety class at Watson Elementary Aug. 2-5 for incoming freshmen. It will focus on fire safety, awareness of strangers, poison control and bicycle safety. Free bike helmets are planned to be distributed during the class.