Around 3,300 children aged five and younger are treated each year in U.S hospital emergency departments from falling from windows. On average, eight deaths occur every year.
According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) these deaths and injuries frequently occur when kids push themselves against window screens or climb onto furniture located next to an open window.
“The deaths and life-altering injuries we have seen here at CPSC are heart-breaking and in many cases preventable,” said CPSC Chairman Inez Tenenbaum. “We want parents and caregivers to think safety before opening the windows where young children are present. It takes active supervision on the part of the parent or caregiver, and a device called a window guard.”
Window falls increase dramatically during the spring and summer months, when parents open windows to cool their properties down. Screens are not a sufficient safety measure as they are designed to keep bugs out, not children in. Window guards or stops are easy to install and have a release mechanism in the event of an emergency. The CPSC also recommends opening windows from the top whenever possible and to keep furniture away from windows, to discourage children from climbing near them.
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