NTSB Advisory
National Transportation Safety Board
Washington, DC 20594
April 11, 2000

NTSB PLANS SPECIAL EVENT TO HIGHLIGHT HISPANIC CHILD TRANSPORTATION SAFETY

The National Transportation Safety Board - in association with the National Council for La Raza, General Motors and the National SAFE KIDS Campaign - will conduct a special event on April 14 to discuss transportation safety issues related to the Hispanic community.

NTSB Chairman Jim Hall will speak at the event and is expected to announce a new highway safety initiative. Also attending the event will be Raul Yzaguirre, president and chief executive of the National Council of La Raza, and Rod Gillum, General Motors Vice President for Corporate Relations.

The event also will feature free child safety seat checkups and a child safety seat giveaway program by GM and the NCLR.

Location:
Multicultural Area Health Education Center
5051 E. Third St.
Los Angeles, California

Schedule:
9 a.m. to noon - Free child safety seat checkups.
10 a.m. - News conference.
11 to noon - News media availability with participants.

Media availability:
Chairman Hall on child transportation safety
NCLR leadership on the GM/NCLR program
GM and United Auto Workers leaders on child safety partnerships
SAFE KIDS officials on child passenger safety education, resources

Photo opportunities:
Speakers
Child safety seat giveaways
GM child safety presentations

Background

Hispanic teens have the highest occupant death rate among all 13- to 19-year-olds. The death rate for Hispanic children aged 5 to 12 is 43 percent lower than the rate for African-American children in the same age group, but 72 percent greater than the rate for white children. Hispanic children under the age of 4 have the second highest highway death rate after African-American children.

Fortunately, effective countermeasures are readily available that Hispanic families can use to protect their children.

• The use of seat belts and child safety seats is the single most effective way to protect children from death and serious injury.
• Seat belts are nearly 50 percent effective in preventing fatalities.
• Child safety seats can reduce the risk by 70 percent.

To obtain those benefits, restraints must be properly used. Seat belts are designed for adults, so children under 8 years old should be in a booster seat, child safety seat or infant seat that is correctly used and appropriate for the child's size and weight.

Child safety seat checkup events have consistently shown that eight out of 10 parents and caregivers fail to properly secure the child, despite their best efforts. Also, a survey showed that 96 percent of parents and caregivers think they are correctly using child seats.

To bridge this knowledge gap, the Safety Board challenged automakers, child seat manufacturers, the Federal government and states to establish permanent child seat fitting stations to provide much needed information. Chairman Hall will be calling for similar efforts that focus on the Latino and African-American communities.

NTSB news media contact: Phil Frame, 202-314-6100.