21-05-2025
‘100 deadliest days of summer' begins this weekend: what to know
SPARTANBURG, S.C. (WSPA) – '100 Deadly Days of Summer' – the span of time between Memorial Day and Labor Day – have begun and Spartanburg officials are urging parents to take extra caution this year.
Safe Kids of the Piedmont said 41% of fatal, unintentional injuries among children occur over the next three months. They said it takes the lives of nearly 4,000 kids.
The causes of death among children during this time range from motor vehicle collisions, unsafe sleeping practices while travelling, and drowning, which makes up for 71%.
'What most people don't realize is that lifeguards are not required at hotel pools,' said Penny Shaw, the Program Coordinator at Safe Kids. 'It's so important when you're vacationing that you are what we call the 'water watcher' and that you are paying attention and watching your children. Put your phone down at the poolside and make sure, because drowning happens very fast.'
Shaw explained one of the biggest misconceptions parents have about drowning.
'They [assume] would hear a child drowning, when once the child starts to struggle, it's within seconds that they won't hear a sound,' she said.
Major Art Littlejohn with Spartanburg Police Department had another focus: safe driving. He said during the '100 deadly days,' they see an increase in vehicle collisions.
'We want to bring awareness to this because we want people to do simple things, such as put your phone down,' Littlejohn said. 'We have a lot of crashes on the road and it's attentiveness where someone has a phone and they're trying to make some phone calls, whatever they may be doing.'
Safe Kids said motor vehicle accidents account for 39% of unintentional child deaths during these three months.
'Look at the guidelines for child passenger safety,' said Shaw. 'Where the children should be sitting in the car when you're traveling, how if they're wanting to take a nap should they do that safely and making sure that they're in the backseat as far away from airbag as possible.'
Safe Kids of the Piedmont said Friday, June 6, they will host an event at Cleveland Park. There, parents are able to take quick child-passenger safety courses, water safety courses, and bring their children for life jacket fittings.
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