Posted on Tuesday, March 29th, 2016 at 12:53 pm
On Saturday, March 26, 2016, The McCutchen Law Firm hosted its 11th annual free child-safety seat inspection in Fort Smith. They were assisted by Fort Smith and Van Buren Police Departments who are certified inspectors. The officers explained and checked the proper installment of car seats and replaced those that were out of date or recalled. The law firm donated 30 convertible car seats that can be used from birth to 50 pounds. Joey McCutchen stated, “I know that as a parent, when we have little ones, it was always concerning that I didn’t know how to properly install (car seats); and even if you have the proper seat, if it’s not properly installed, it still endangers the lives of our young ones.”
The firm also provided a free identification kit titled “WHALE” which is an acronym for “We Have A Little Emergency.” Parents and grandparents were given four self-adhesive stickers and one informational label to stick onto the back of a car seat, which provides vital information including the child’s name, birth date, medical history and who should be contacted in the event of an emergency. By sticking the label to the back of the car seat, it can’t be seen from the outside of a vehicle, which ensures safety and privacy of the child and family.
Additionally two WHALE stickers are given to be placed on each side of the safety seat, and two additional WHALE stickers are given to be placed on the back side windows of the vehicle to alert first-responders that children are in the vehicle and that they are participants in the program, so responders will know to look at the information label on the back of the safety-seat. “I want folks to know that what we’re trying to do is save at least one life. If we can do that, we can make the world a safer place,” McCutchen stated.
