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to 64 and among children 1 to 14
years old .
Poisoning by solids and liquids,
which ranks third among home mis–
haps, is the chief cause of fatal ac–
cidents in the age range 15 to 44.
Mechanical suffocation and in–
halat ion and ingestion of food and
other objects are leading causes of
fatal home accidents among infants
under one year of age.
More Deadly Than Warfare
Around the world automobile acci–
dents have reached " epidemic pro–
portions." At the present rate of
motor vehicle carnage, one of every
two American citizens living today
can expect to be injured or killed in
a traff ic accident during his or her
lifetime.
Consider this tragic fact: Since
the invention of the automobile,
more than 2 million Americans have
been killed in auto acc idents -
more than the total number of
Americans killed in World War
1,
World War 11 , the Korean War, Viet–
nam, and all other wars involving
the United States of America.
Whi le poor highway conditions
enter into many car accidents, the
overwhelming majority of all auto
accidents (over 98%) could have
been prevented by safe defensive
driving or by proper automotive
maintenance.
Dr. James L. Malfetti , who has
spent many years researchmg the
causes of auto accidents, declared:
" In its most simple form the results
come to this - man drives as he
lives." He added, "Evidence shows
that people who adjust well to life's
institut ions will adjust well to the
highway complex. A man who has
trouble with a credit agency wil l
have trouble in traff ic . The poor
driver is likely to be hostile, rmpul–
sive, and in trouble with social
agencies." Uncontrolled .emotions
play a big role in not just auto acci –
dents, but all accidents.
For example , although satety
belts are now available in practically
all new cars, less than 40% of pas–
sengers use them. The National
Safety Council in
Accident Facts,
1975 edition, says, "Curren! infor–
mation on the lite-saving potential
of lap-type safety belts indicates
that it al! passenger car occupants
The
PLAIN TRUTH December 1976
CommonlyNeglected
Safety Precautions
Your safe ty is made up o f little
things. You should take thc time to
walk a few fee t to th row a switch.
to get a be ttc r tool, o r
LO
move an
o bs tructi on from the fl oor; you
should s ta nd back a few fcct to get
a good look a t the appara tu you
a re going Lo work o n ; you sho uld
ge l a lo ng . dca r view befo re pull–
ing out to pass the car in fro nt, and
yo u s ho uld use your " turn" sig na!.
Yo ur safety is la rgely a ma tte r of
fo resight.
He re are some othe r a reas to
wo rk on:
• Keep thc work a rca in your
home. facto ry, or o ffi ce nca t a nd
el
can. A
el
u tte red , messy wo rk
a rea is a n invitatio n to tro uble .
Junk o n the fl oor. spill cd greasy
subs ta nccs, sca ttcred tools and ma–
tc ria ls, o r o bj cc ts po ised d a n–
gerously agai ns t wa ll could be a n
in vita tio n toa li fe-lo ng injury.
• Not e po te ntiall y d a nge ro us
arcas in your homc: o bstacl es,
frayed wires, frayed rugs. torn li–
no le um. s li ppery floor::.. loosc sca t–
te r. r ugs, and loose ly hang i ng
a nr cles from the ceiling.
• Wa tch how you switch on c lec–
tr icity. Ncvcr to uch a swi tch o r an
o utlc t when your hands are wet.
Do no t touch an c lect ric appliance
and a wa te r pipe or rad ia tor at th e
same time. Do no t mcddl e with
e lcctric con nect io ns when you a re
ba refoot. (A man who was a ge–
n ius in e lcct ronics absent-mind–
edl y p icked up the li ve cnd of an
e lectrical connection whil e ba re–
foo t, with disas trous results. )
• Storc a ll potcntia lly poisono u
pr o d uc ts in locke d cabi n e ts,
(in the United States) used belts at
al l times, such use would save at
least 12,000 lives annually. " lsn ' t
your lite worth the few seconds it
takes to snap a satety harness in
place?
Our tami liarity with cars and mar–
veis
ot
modern living spawns com–
placency and inattent ion. And
inattent ion is a primary cause of ac–
cidents.
cl ose ts, o r drawcrs. (Two third . of
homc po isonings involve childrcn
unde r fi ve .)
• /\ vo id taking medicine in front
o f ch ild ren. and ncver re fe r to any
medic ine as candy.
• Keep atl products in the ir orig–
in a l cont a in e rs. Ncver tra ns fc r
th em to cont a in c rs tha t co uld
ca use th em to be confused with
food.
• Make certai n a ll products a re
la be led , and always read the la bc l–
ing be fo re using thcm .
• Kecp a firs t-a id chart o f wh a t
to do fo r commo n inj uries, burns,
and poisons.
• Keep ya rds, garages, s toragc
rooms, basements. a nd play a rcas
free of trash a nd bottl es.
• Kcep guns a nd ammun it ion in
scpa ra te places, preferably undc r
lock and key. Do no t a llow ch il–
drcn to play with guns.
• Remove na ils from boa rds no t
in use.
• Keep sha rp obj ects o ut of the
rcach of children . Do not a llow
ch ildren to run with wooden st icks
o r with a rticles tha t may break if
th e children fa ll (e.g.. bo ttl es,
g lasscs, plaslic toys).
• Ma rk or idcnt ify largc picture
wa lkth rough doors so tha t unsus–
pecting indivi duals will sce them
and no t walk into thcm.
• Unplug e lcctric cords when
eq u ipment is not in use.
• Swee p up b r o k e n glass
promp tl y a nd di sca rd cracked
c hin a a nd glasswa r e. Use
nonbreaka bl e d ishes a nd conta in–
e rs fo r a ll ch ildren a nd around til e
and cement surfaces.
God intended that we live full and
active lives. Not al! accidents can
be avoided. But we can eliminate
many needless ones, or minimize
their severity, by more alertness
and foresightedness.
Solomon wrote : " The wise man
looks ahead. The fool attempts to
fool himselt and won't tace tacts"
(P r overbs 14 : 8 ,
The Living
Bible).
o
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