A reminder to be safe

Ketchikan (Alaska) Daily News: June is National Safety Month throughout the United States, and each week is dedicated to raising awareness about different safety concerns.

(This week) is dedicated to preventing slips, trips and falls.

No matter how graceful a person is, we all slip up at some point. However, we’re not talking about the occasional stubbed toe; it’s the serious, bone-breaking falls that we want to avoid.

The council states that falls in the United States account for approximately 8.6 million visits to the emergency room. Adults 55 and older are more likely to fall, and the resulting injuries can last a long time. More alarming, the rate of fall-related deaths among those 65 or older is four times that of all other age groups.

The final week of National Safety Month encourages cellphone users to refrain from talking on their phones while driving. According to the council, 93 percent of the U.S. population uses cellphones, and it can be dangerous to drive while distracted by a telephone conversation.

We’re going to add the dangerous practice of texting while driving to the list of no-nos. For everybody’s sake, please save your multitasking for times when you aren’t in charge of a large, fast, heavy and potentially deadly moving vehicle.

Stay safe this month and every month.