Free car-seat check is Saturday at Sharon FD

Staff report

SHARON, PA.

A free car-seat check by nationally certified car-seat technicians will be from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday at the Sharon Fire Department, 155 W. Connelly Blvd.

The event is sponsored by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, Pennsylvania State Police and the Pennsylvania Traffic Injury Prevention Project as part of the annual Child Passenger Safety Week observance.

The technicians will ensure that car and booster seats are properly secured in vehicles and check that children are correctly buckled up.

Seats also will be evaluated for possible expirations and recalls. Adults are encouraged to take the owner’s manuals for their vehicles and car seats.

Pennsylvania law requires children under 4 to ride in a federally approved car seat appropriate for the child’s age, height and weight.

Children between 4 and 8 must use a booster seat if they no longer are in a car seat.

Because of the potential dangers associated with air-bag deployment, children 12 and under should always ride in a vehicle’s back seat.

Between 2010 to 2014, 82 percent of children under 4 who were involved in crashes and restrained in a child seat sustained no injury, according to PennDOT.