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PLAYGROUND SAFETY WEEK FOCUSES ON INJURY PREVENTION
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National Playground Safety Week April 26th-30th, 2010 |
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Each year about 205,000 children are treated in hospital emergency rooms for injuries related to playground equipment falls, entrapments, cuts, or other playground equipment-related injuries. Playground safety has changed drastically from the 1940’s and the decades that followed, when asphalt was recommended as the safety surface of choice. Today, we understand the severity of injuries that
can result from inadequate and/or inappropriate safety surfacing. Fortunately, many playground injuries can be prevented.
National Playground Safety Week April 26th-30th, 2010 is highlighting the things parents and teachers should look for to assure children can enjoy safety in the out of doors.
Sof’Solutions, in conjunction with the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), offers the following tips to help in the prevention of injuries and other hazards to children playing on both public and home playgrounds:
• Always supervise children on play equipment to make sure that they are safe at all times.
• The surface around the playground equipment should be soft enough to cushion a fall. Maintain the appropriate depth of wood fiber or rubber surface under and around playground equipment.
• Ensure that protective surfacing extends at least six feet in all directions from play equipment and provides sufficient fall height protection. For swings, extend protective surfacing in both directions of the swing, twice the height of the swing’s suspending bar.
• Enclosed openings on playground equipment must be checked for head entrapment hazards. Children often enter openings feet first and attempt to slide through the opening. If the opening is not large enough, it may allow the body to pass through the opening and entrap the head.
• Playground maintenance is critical to ensure the play area remains safe for children. There should be no missing, broken, or worn-out components; all hardware should be secure, repair sharp points or edges, replace missing hardware and close “S” hooks, and all parts should be stable with no apparent sign of loosening.
• Trip hazards are created by play structure components or items left/attached to the playground. Never attach ropes, jump ropes, clotheslines, pet leashes, or any cord of any kind to play equipment, as these will pose a strangulation hazard
The playground and surfacing industry, in cooperation with NRPA, CPSC and ASTM, have escalated efforts to improve the safety of play areas in parks and schools. The activity of play is critical to the health, wellness and development of children; providing a safer and accessible environment where all children can play, learn and develop is our industries’ mission.
As a recognized leader in play safety surfacing for the last 17 years, Sof’Solutions aims to strengthen and revitalize the recreational surfacing needs for schools, parks, and water park facilities to ensure a safe, accessible, and inviting play environment for all children. Sof’Solutions has surfaced over 350 Million cubic feet of play surfacing, always maintaining their tradition of quality, value, and friendly customer service. Sof’Solutions creates the finest public and residential play surfacing using eco-friendly recycled products. For more information visit: www.sofsolutions.com. |
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Media Kit
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