Family’s thanks for bike helmet safety

By Kath Gannaway
YEARS of demanding that their children wear bike helmets has paid off for a Coldstream couple.
Christine Rice believes her daughter Emily was saved from head injuries when she was hit by a car on 26 November because she was wearing a helmet.
Emily waited for one car to pass before crossing the road near her home, but didn’t see a second car.
“She saw the first car, but must have assumed there were no more cars and has gone out on to the road and got hit on the leg and thrown onto the windscreen and on to the road,” Mrs Rice said.
Emily was flown to hospital by air ambulance and was treated for a broken leg … but thankfully, with no head injuries.
“She did all the right things with the helmet, but it cracked right down the middle, so it could have been much worse,” Mrs Rice said.
The incident has been a reality check for students at Coldstream Primary School, where students learnt of Emily’s experience the next morning.
Principal Peter Donaldson said students were first reassured about Emily’s condition, then the message that the school reinforces regularly, was put into first-person perspective.
“Children, and some parents, become complacent about helmets when the kids are riding around the estate, but the message from this is you can be on the estate and still have an accident; it only takes a split second,” Mr Donaldson said.
Mr Donaldson said they also asked parents to take the opportunity to speak with their children not only about wearing a helmet when they are riding a bike, but when they ride skateboards and scooters.
“Emily has been riding on her own for ages, but my husband and I have always been very strong in insisting that the kids wear their helmets,” Mrs Rice said.
“There is no choice, if you want to ride your bike, you have to use a helmet, even if it is just in the court.”
Mrs Rice said she would also like to see the law on helmets applied to scooters and skateboards.