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Printer-Friendly ModeSafety precautions should be followed
October 1, 2007 —
Buckle your seatbelt.
Wear your helmet.
Most of us heard both phrases growing up.
Personally, I find buckling my seatbelt as natural as sitting down. I actually feel odd if I am sitting in a car, moving or not, if I don't have a seatbelt on.
One of the reasons I don't ride my bike anymore is because I find it difficult to be on one and not have a helmet on. This is probably due to years of having to "always wear a helmet" drilled into my head by my parents and elementary school. I would feel stupid riding around campus with a helmet on since most students don't.
Both seatbelts and helmets are elements of safety. Wearing a seatbelt can prevent a person from being seriously injured in a car accident. Putting a helmet on can protect your head if for some reason you fall off your bike.
A few of my brother's friends believe that they shouldn't have to wear a seatbelt. One of them says it's his constitutional right to not be forced to strap in.
Not wearing a seatbelt is just plain stupid. My grandfather would most likely be dead had he not worn a seatbelt.
Almost two decades ago he was in a bit of a freak car accident where he flipped his van over a couple of times. His final flip had him hanging upside down by the seatbelt. Had he not buckled up, he may not be with my family today.
What got me thinking about seatbelts and helmets was a safety video I recently watched when I got hired by Dining Services to work in the catering department.
This video was of Charlie Morecraft talking about how safety in the workplace is so important. Morecraft used to work at an Exxon refinery and because he didn't do his job by the safety standards, he burned over 45 percent of his body in an accident.
Morecraft talked about the accident, explaining the safety steps he skipped because he believed that he wouldn't get in a workplace accident. His story proved otherwise.
The hardest part for me wasn't listening about the accident, but listening about his recovery process. Morecraft talked about being in a hospital burn unit and how excruciating the pain was.
He talked about how at times he felt he would be better off dead. I honestly cannot even imagine how that would feel.
Many people hear of accidents and think "this won't happen to me," but there is no way of knowing for sure. We are all human, and by nature humans make mistakes, which cause accidents. What we can do is abide by common safety standards to make those inevitable accidents less severe.
Just remember, uncomfortable safety steps today may save you from unbearable pain tomorrow.