It could happen to you.... or your family members. My advice to keep your family safe.
Hello there fellow Mountain Homies! It has been a while but I'm back in the saddle to bring you the safety messages that can help protect you and your families. It is with a sad heart that I bring you todays safety message.
A lot of times we are oblivious to the fact that bad things can happen to us and/or our families. The thought "It will never happen to me" seems to be more familiar of a phrase than "its better to be safety than sorry." Examples of this would be when the husband was putting Christmas lights on house in the rain and almost fell off the roof. True story by the way, luckily, he didn't fall. He slipped and almost fell but was able to stop just before the edge of the roof. This was a close call but as the saying goes, "close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades." In the world of safety we call this a near miss. A near miss? What exatly is that you might ask... Well, near miss of a potential disaster or accident that could result in catastrophic or deadly consequences. This gentlemen was lucky; however, there was another person who did fall off her roof just a few short days later and ended up with some broken bones. Not a deadly accident but it definitely could have been. Perhaps if we adjusted our way of thinking and thought about the safest way to do something or perhaps that fact that we probably should not be doing something, we might just prevent mishaps.
This leads me to todays safety message. We know that when traveling through a cross walk, we as pedestrian's have the right-of-way. It is law. It is fact and if that rule is violated there is a potential for consequences for the violator. Now think of this scenario on the other side of the story. Imagine how you would feel if it was your loved one who was hit because this rule/law was violated. Would it matter that it was a law? Would the fact that your family/friend had the right-of-way? Would this somehow erase the fact that your family member was struck and now is suffering from some type of injury or is now dead? What we sometimes fail to realize is that just because we have the right-of-way, doesn't mean that we are going to be given the right-of-way. Drivers these days are constantly distracted. Whether it be by, texting, talking, eating, grooming, heck even reading sometimes drivers are simply not paying attention. This ultimately results in the reality that just because you have the right-of-way doesn't mean it is going to be given to you.
Right here in our little town, yes in our local area where nothing like this could ever possibly happen we we had an incident that involved an individual being struck in a crosswalk. This happened within the last two weeks. Yes the person had the right away. Yes the driver was wrong. Did that "right" keep the person safe? Did that "wrong" change the fact that the person was hit? Absolutely not..... it doesn't matter who was right or wrong because someone was still injured and will have to endure medical treatment and evaluation. Their family was still traumatized by the situation. The person still got hit. Being right or wrong doesn't change the fact that someone almost died.
I come to you as a citizen of Idaho, a resident of Mountain Home, and a mom of 2 and 3/4 kiddos (she is due in February). I ask that you please teach your children, inform your friends, and spread the word that before you attempt to cross a road, even in a cross walk, that you stop and look both ways first. It doesn't matter if that little man comes up on the sign saying you have the right-of-way, it doesn't matter if there are other people walking through the cross walk, it only matters that you, your family, and your friends make it safety to their destination.
The point.... please teach and spread the work to stop at cross walks, look both ways, and then cross the street. Do this for your safety, piece of mind, and to protect those you love.
CROSS WALK SAFETY TIPS:
1. Before entering a crosswalk come to a complete stop and look both ways.
2. Ensure oncoming vehicles recognize you or make eye contact with the driver.
3. If the crosswalk has lights use the button and turn them on.
4. NEVER ASSUME A DRIVER IS PAYING ATTENTION OR WILL STOP.
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