The EAC Safe Start program is making sure that parents and caregivers in Queens and Long Island know how to keep their children safe in their vehicles through educational workshops and other outreach methods.
Started five years ago, the program is funded by the governor’s Traffic Safety Committee and is done in partnership with Astoria Federal Savings. It is available in Queens, Nassau and Suffolk Counties.
As a child passenger safety program, it educates people about new laws concerning child safety seats, car seat safety and car safety. Safe Start goes into the community to perform educational services in a variety of places, such as car dealerships, day care centers, WIC Centers and hospitals, among others. They also have a classroom in their own facility.
“Our primary focus is low income individuals and the limited English-speaking communities,” said Safe Start Program Director Rachel Lugo.
Other issues that Safe Start addresses while educating parents and caregivers are New York State’s new child safety booster seat law, appropriate car seat restraints, and the position a car seat needs to be in depending on a child’s age and weight.
Another point that Lugo said is important to educate people about is that they should not purchase or use a car seat that they do not know the history of. For example, she said it could have been a recalled product or have been involved in an accident.
Along with their educational events, Safe Start distributes car seats, although they encourage recipients to first participate in a workshop.
In Queens, Safe Start works with HB Chevy and also has events at Queens Borough Hall. Recently, they held a child passenger safety check at HB Chevy. Lugo explained that when a car pulls in, they evaluate for misuses of the car seat and look at other safety areas. They then educate the parent about anything that is incorrect and show them the proper methods. Safe Start also looks up the model numbers of the car seats to make sure that they have not been recalled.
Safe Start will return to HB Chevy, located in Forest Hills at 105-20 Queens Boulevard, on Wednesday, January 2.
People in Queens and Nassau County wishing to find out more about EAC Safe Start can call 516-292-7362. In Suffolk County, call 631-648-7100 x210.
