Back to School Season: Make Safety Your Priority this Fall
The time to go back to school is just around the corner and school buses will be picking up kids and young people will be scurrying across streets to get to class before the bell rings. Traffic increases and parents are often guilty of running yellow lights or speeding, as they try to drop off kids then make their way through traffic and onward to work. Likewise, young adults will be heading back to college or going off to uni for the first time. Whether you’re a parent, K-12 student or university student, back to school season means both drivers and pedestrians need to be vigilant on and off the roads. Here’s how to stay safe and prepared when getting back to school.
Driving Around Neighborhoods and School Zones
According to research by the National Safety Council, most of the children who die in bus-related incidents are ages 4-7 and it happens when they are walking. They might be hit by the bus or by a motorist illegally passing a stopped bus. If you’re driving behind a bus, allow greater following distance than when driving behind a car. And don’t try to pass it when it stops. It is illegal in all 50 states to pass a school bus that is stopped to load or unload children. Keep an eye out for children and college kids riding bikes, too. They might not always follow road rules, yet they do have the “right-of-way.”
Keep an emergency first aid kit in your car at all times. In the event you or someone else is hurt, call 911. You may be able to use items in your safety kit to tend to minor wounds or use one of the safety tools to possibly save someone’s life.
Back to School: Campus Safety for Young Adults
As college students return to campus, safety is on the minds of their parents and it should be on the mind of university students, too. Some statistics state 1 in 4 women will be the target of sexual assault during their college career. Pepper Spray is an essential tool that helps students ward off an attacker. When sprayed, it irritates the eyes and lungs, causing pain in the attacker and giving the targeted victim time to escape. Small yet powerful, it will attach to your keychain and sprays over 10 feet, making it the perfect device to keep students safe from any potential violence this school year.
It’s also a good idea to also carry a personal alarm, like defendme, which can be heard from a distance. This can deter your would-be attacker and also alert students in nearby dorms, parking lots, or pathways that something is wrong.
You can learn more about our emergency kits and personal safety products, defendme and protectme, by visiting our product page.
