The Walmart parking lot filled with diligent parents from 1-3 p.m. on Wednesday, July 16, as 10 Child Passenger Safety Technician students conducted free car seat inspections as the final step in their national certification process.
Led by Union County Fire Lt. Patrick Schmidt and sanctioned by the nonprofit organization Safe Kids Worldwide, the three-day CPST course trained students to match children with the safest possible seat through proper inspection and installation.
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Returning to Blairsville for the first time in two years, the course certified 10 new CPSTs and recertified several from the 2023 cohort.
This time around, students included firefighters and sheriff’s deputies from Union, Dawson and Hart counties, as well as a few civilians with a passion for public safety – all of whom registered through an online application.
“I was taught that I’m doing (car seats) wrong as a parent,” said student and Hart County Firefighter Jerrine Jackson, who stressed the importance of being proactive when it comes to child safety. “You don’t really think (anything bad) is going to happen to you until it does.”
In reality, car accidents are a constant threat to any child traveling in a motor vehicle. In 2020 alone, the Georgia Department of Public Health reported that traffic accidents were the leading cause of injury-related deaths of children ages 5 to 14.
However, most of these tragedies can be prevented with proper child passenger safety techniques – something many parents have never been taught.
“What we all think is the right way is not the right way in order for the kids to be safe,” said Jacob White, a father who brought his car for inspection.
Including White’s, 12 vehicles came through the checkpoint, giving CPST students an opportunity to inspect a total of 25 car seats. Of those, 11 were immediately replaced.
“If we find that one is expired… (or) just needs to be replaced, we (do so) free of charge,” Lt. Schmidt said. He added that parents can schedule private inspections with Union County Fire Station No. 1 at any time and still receive free replacement seats if necessary.
“We are going to be working in conjunction with the Sheriff’s Office, and we’re going to try to do at least one – if not two – of these events every year, just to make sure the kids in the community are safe,” Schmidt said. “That’s what we’re here for – to promote safety.”
Appalachian Trail Traffic Enforcement Network Assistant Coordinator Steve Bennett Jr. was one of several UCSO deputies to attend the event on Wednesday, and he spoke about upcoming law enforcement initiatives to protect children on the roads.
“We are working on getting grants from the governor’s office,” Bennett said. “One of those grants will help with providing funds to … reduce traffic fatalities and injuries along the highways.”
As a part of that mission, Bennett said the Sheriff’s Office plans to use the grants to expand its community outreach efforts, including more car seat safety checks and other public education events.
