Beware of these Hazards
07 Jul 2002
The worst injury or death is the one that is preventable. And every year such tragedies happen because no one thought they could. For instance, did you know that you’re toting a .367 magnum gun when you’re cutting the grass?
Most people consider cutting the lawn a routine task, not a dangerous one. But a report from The Mayo Clinic shows it involves more than just keeping fingers and toes away from rotating blades.
Surgeons report that a four-year old boy was watching his father cut the grass with a tractor mower. He suddenly cried out that he had been hit by something and was taken immediately to the local hospital.
Examination revealed only a tiny three millimeter cut so the boy was sent home. But 48 hours later he was airlifted to the Mayo Clinic due to vomiting and abdominal pain. X-rays revealed a small metal object lodged in his spine and severe hemorrhage.
Surgery was required to remove a piece of chain-link fence and to repair a tear in one of the major abdominal vessels.
Dr. Scott Zietlow, the surgeon, says, “Power mowers can propel an object at an incredible velocity. Few people realize that power mower blades revolve up to 370 kilometers an hour. This generates three times the muzzle energy of a .367 magnum pistol that can fire a bullet through the engine block of a car.”
Dr Bruce Cohen, an orthopedic surgeon at the Carolina Medical School in North Carolina, claims that every year in the U.S there are 100,000 injuries due to power lawn mowers. And that 11 percent of these injuries occur to children under 15 years of age.
These are often devastating injuries. Many patients require either amputation or as many as six operations to repair the damage. Moreover, infection is a major problem as grass and dirt are propelled into the wound.
Injuries from reckless use of power mowers can be prevented by simple good sense. Don’t allow young children to use them. And make sure they’re not playing nearby when you’re cutting the grass.
But good judgement doesn’t always protect children from injury. Some that most people would never consider possible.
The Journal of the Canadian Medical Association reports that children have been fatally asphyxiated by drawstrings on clothing.
In one case a three year old girl was playing on a slide at a day care centre. The drawstring on a hood she was wearing became caught at the top of the slide. By the time someone discovered her she had died of asphyxiation by strangling.
The U.S Consumer Products Safety Commission reported 276 deaths from playground equipment between 1973 and 1999. And 25 of these involved clothing.
I’m particularly aware of this problem. Many years ago my 10 year old son was skiing with friends. But as he was getting off the ski-lift the drawstring on his jacket caught on the chair. The lift should have been stopped immediately but the operator was reading a book! This left my son 30 feet above the ground, hanging by a thread. Luckily he survived this ordeal.
Have you ever secured your luggage with an elasticized device? The kind used to hold baggage on wheeled trolleys or on car roofs with metal hooks at each end?
A report in the Medical Journal of Australia described cases of people injured when one end of the device gave way and the metal hook struck an eye. Doctors say the hook is small enough to fit into the eye socket and acts as a high velocity missile.
Usually the victims are so occupied securing one end of the strap that they are unaware the other end is about to become detached. Seventeen patients suffered permanent loss of vision from this kind of mishap.
Having once struck a deer while driving I always keep this hazard in mind. Hitting a moose or deer is the same as driving into a brick wall and having it fall on you. Or having a head-on collision with another car.
In Maine there are 700 moose-car accidents a year and nine percent of victims die. Sweden has the highest moose population density in the world and the moose is the second cause of car accidents after alcohol. The best protection is to be constantly aware you’re in deer or moose country and drive slowly. Your chance of survival is greater with a large car. And if you’re ever unlucky and hit one I hope it’s a small moose.
