In this week's Saturday Safety Roundup, stories of:

• a 15-year-old in Lock Haven, Pennsylvania who died after he unintentionally shot himself in the chest with an air rifle at a friends home.
• a 4-year-old in Prescott Valley, Arizona who unintentionally shot and killed his father, an Iraq War veteran with the Army Special Forces, while they were visiting the home of one of his father's friends, where the boy found a gun.
• a 5-year-old in Fairfield, Alabama who unintentionally shot his own finger while playing with his grandfather's gun.
• a 14-year-old in Atlanta, Georgia who was shot in the abdomen by her 18-year-old brother who was playing with a gun.
• a 16-year-old in San Antonio, Texas who is in critical condition after she hit a tree while riding on an ATV. She was not wearing a helmet.
• an 11-year-old in Henry County, Kentucky who died when the ATV he was driving crashed on his family's farm.
• a 5-year-old in Lexington, North Carolina who suffered major injuries to his leg as his father unintentionally backed over him while mowing the lawn.
• a 5-month-old in Moorhead, Minnesota who died after she was unintentionally left in a hot car for up to four hours. Her father forgot her in the car after he had unloaded five other kids from their minivan once he got back to their apartment after dropping his wife off at work.
• a 7-month-old in Albuquerque, New Mexico who is in critical condition after being left in a hot car.
• a 15-month-old in Fresno, California who died after he was unintentionally left in a hot car after his family had returned home from a shopping trip.
• a 3-year-old in Mableton, Georgia who is in critical condition after he fell three stories out of a window on to a concrete driveway. The toddler had gotten onto a chair just before falling out of the open window.
• a 2-year-old in Yonkers, New York who is in critical condition after she fell from a third-story window of her apartment building.
• a 22-month-old in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania who died after he fell out of a fifth-story window  in a highrise apartment building.
• a 3-year-old in Syracuse, Utah who is critical condition after a dresser with a TV on top of it toppled on her.
• a 7-year-old in Anniston, Alabama who required surgery after being bitten on his face by the family dog.
• a 5-year-old in Jessieville, Arkansas who died after he was attacked by a Bull Mastiff dog. The boy and his sister were staying at the home because they had lost their own home in the Moore, Oklahoma tornado.
• a 22-month-old in Des Moines, Iowa who was hospitalized after the family dog, a Rottweiler mix, bit him on the face.
• a 6-year-old in Boise, Idaho who drowned in an apartment complex swimming pool.
• a 3-year-old in Dallas, Texas who drowned in a backyard swimming pool. He had been left alone in the yard while his uncle went to his car to get medication to treat a bee sting.
• an 18-month-old in Kentwood, Michigan who drowned in a pond at the Old Farm Shores Park after his brother and cousins, all younger than 10 years of age, lost track of him for about 30 minutes.
• a 4-year-old in Kissimmee, Florida who drowned in a pool during a family reunion.
• a 12-year-old in Johns Island, South Carolina who drowned while playing tag with two other children near a boat dock.
• a 6-year-old in Austin, Texas who drowned while swimming with friends and relatives at the Red Roof Inn.
• a 10-year-old in Wellesley, Massachusetts who drowned at Morses Pond after being reported missing from the beach area.
• a 2-year-old in Litchfield, Arizona who drowned in a backyard pool after the pool fence was left propped open during a family gathering and family members had lost track of the little girl for just two to five minutes.
• a 15-year-old in Elgin, South Carolina who drowned in a backyard pool. The teen with autism had wandered away from his nearby school earlier that morning.
• a 13-year-old in Las Vegas, Nevada who drowned in an apartment swimming pool.
• a 16-year-old in Raytown, Missouri who drowned at Lakewood Lake.
• a 2-year-old in Meade County, Kentucky who died after getting run over by a van that was backing up in a driveway.
• a 16-year-old in Dawsonville, Georgia who died after she fell from the hood of a moving car - car surfing.
• a 2-year-old in West Valley City, Utah who died as he was struck by a car while in his stroller as he crossed the street with his mother and older sibling.
• a 14-year-old in Centralia, Kansas who died in a tubing accident. He was thrown while riding an inner tube that was being pulled by a boat.

Keep your kids safe. Not all, but many of these types of accidents can be prevented.

Many of the accidents and tragedies are ones that we see week after week, especially drownings, dog bites, falls, ATV accidents, unintentional shootings, and even lawn mower accidents.

Spread the word about child safety to help save lives and reduce these types of accidents and tragedies.

Related:
Layers of Protection - Child Safety Tips
Gun Safety
Road and Traffic Safety
Kids in Hot Cars Alert
Health and Safety Slogans

The CDC recently reported that a large multistate outbreak of Salmonella is continuing, now affecting children and adults in 34 states.

So far, at least 224 people have gotten sick with Salmonella symptoms, including 37 who required hospitalization, in an outbreak that has been linked "to contact with chicks, ducklings, and other live baby poultry purchased from multiple feed stores and sourced from multiple mail-order hatcheries."

Initially announced in April, this outbreak has steadily grown, with 78 new reports of infections and infections in 10 new states since May. And since the majority of the infections are in children under 10 years of age, it is a great reminder to teach your kids to "always wash hands thoroughly with soap and water right after touching live poultry or anything in the area where they live and roam."

Unfortunately, there is another active outbreak with a different strain of Salmonella that is linked "to contact with chicks, ducklings, and other live baby poultry from Mt. Healthy Hatchery in Ohio." This outbreak has already caused 98 people to get sick in 21 states, including 16 people who required hospitalization.

Parents should also remember that in addition to live poultry, reptiles, including turtles, lizards and snakes, can also carry Salmonella, as can amphibians, such as frogs, toads, newts, and salamanders.

Teach your kids good hand washing techniques and make sure they wash their hands well after touching their pets or visiting a farm or petting zoo.

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CDC - Salmonella Outbreaks 2013
Salmonella Symptoms
Pet Turtles and Salmonella
Salmonella and Food Poisoning

In this week's Saturday Safety Roundup, stories of:

• a 13-year-old in Las Vegas, Nevada who died after she was unintentionally shot by one her friends.
• a 4-year-old in Dallas, Texas who was hospitalized after he unintentionally shot himself with a gun that he found under a pillow in his grandfather's room.
• a 10-year-old in San Diego, California who died after he was unintentionally shot while playing with a gun with a 9-year-old friend.
• a 13-year-old near Joshua, Texas who died on her birthday after she was unintentionally shot by her 19-year-old brother who was cleaning his guns.
• a 4-year-old in Edenville Township, Michigan who suffered serious bites, including some to the back of her head and her face, after she tripped over pit bull/mastiff mix who had very recently bitten a 21-month-old child.
• an 8-year-old in Monessen, Pennsylvania who was hospitalized with severe wounds to his arm and leg after being mauled by a Shar Pei mix as the owner was letting the child in the house and the dog out.
• a 3-year-old in Nashville, Tennessee who is requiring treatment and reconstructive surgery at Cincinnati's Shriners Hospital after her German shepherd "just kind of pulled her scalp off."
• a 3-year-old in Chicago, Illinois who was attacked by two pit bulls while visiting a home.
• a 2-year-old in Greenville, Tennessee who is in critical condition after being attacked by a pit bull.
• a 3-year-old in Mount Olive, Mississippi who is hospitalized after being attacked by a pit bull.
• an 11-year-old in Baker, Florida who died while riding an ATV with his 14-year-old sister. He was riding on the front cargo rack of the ATV in a field when they hit a utility trailer.
• an 11-year-old in Eminence, Kentucky who died while riding an ATV on his grandfather's farm.
• an 11-year-old in Minong Township, Wisconsin who died while riding an ATV after it flipped on gravel.
• a 3-year-old in Potosi, Missouri who died while riding on an ATV with his parents. The ATV went off the side off the road and overturned.
• a 7-year-old in Meeker, Colorado who died while riding an ATV, which rolled over and pinned him underneath the vehicle.
• a 4-year-old in Harmony, Maine who had his right leg amputated above the knee in a lawn mower accident. The preschooler was riding on a trailer that was attached to the mower, fell out, and got caught in the blades of his father's lawn mower.
• a 2-year-old in Murrieta, California who drowned in a backyard hot tub. He had been playing in the hot tub with other children at a party when he was found floating by his uncle.
• an 11-year-old in Houma, Louisiana who drowned in an apartment complex swimming pool while visiting family. Although he was playing with other kids in the pool, he had never been in a large pool and didn't know how to swim.
• a 1-year-old in Portland, Oregon who drowned in a small pond outside his home.
• a 3-year-old in Yonkers, New York who is in critical condition after falling from a third-floor window.
• a 16-year-old in Fleetwood, Pennsylvania who died after falling off of the bumper of a moving Jeep.
• a 15-year-old from Marlborough, Connecticut who died after she fell 15 to 20 feet from a waterfall at Enders State Forest.
• an 18-year-old in Arlington County, Virginia who died during a skateboarding stunt (skitching). He was holding on the to the side of a car being driven by his 17-year-old friend when he lost control and fell.
• a 3-year-old in Morris, Illinois who died after she became entangled with a rope on a swing set in her backyard.
• a 2-year-old in Tacoma, Washington who died after his mother backed over him while pulling out of their driveway in an SUV.
• a 23-month-old in Arlington, Texas who died in a house fire.
• two pre-teens in Montgomery County, Tennessee who died in a house fire.

Keep your kids safe. Not all, but many of these types of accidents can be prevented.

Many of the accidents and tragedies are ones that we see week after week, especially drownings, dog bites, falls, ATV accidents, unintentional shootings, and even lawn mower accidents.

Spread the word about child safety to help save lives and reduce these types of accidents and tragedies.

Related:
Layers of Protection - Child Safety Tips
Gun Safety
Road and Traffic Safety
Kids in Hot Cars Alert
Health and Safety Slogans

The New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene has issued an update on the measles outbreak in New York City.

Unlike many other measles outbreaks in the United States, this one comes with new vaccine recommendations:

"To interrupt the spread of measles in this community, the Health Department recommends that the first dose of measles- mumps-rubella-vaccine (MMR) now be given at 6 months of age to all Orthodox Jewish children living in Borough Park, Williamsburg, and Crown Heights...

Further, non-Orthodox children receiving medical care in practices that serve predominantly Orthodox Jewish patients, should also receive MMR vaccine beginning at 6 months of age because of the increased risk of exposure...

In the setting of this outbreak, Orthodox Jewish children aged 12 months and older living in Borough Park, Williamsburg, and Crown Heights who have received their first dose of MMR should receive their second MMR dose now, as long as 28 days has elapsed after the first dose."

Why are these kids getting their vaccines ahead of schedule, especially when that first MMR before age 12 months won't even count for school or day care and will have to be repeated?

Of course, the problem is that the measles outbreak in New York City continues to grow. There are now 48 confirmed cases, with additional suspected cases and a large number of exposed people (at least 2,000 at last count).

As in other outbreaks, in New York City, "all cases were in persons who were unvaccinated at the time of exposure, because they were too young to have been vaccinated or because their parents delayed or refused vaccine for their children." And unfortunately, there is "a large pool of susceptible children" that can keep this outbreak going.

It is important to note that this seems to be one of the largest measles outbreaks we have seen recently. Most other outbreaks are quickly contained before they reach 10 to 20 cases.

In fact, in 2011, when there were 220 cases, a 15-year record high for measles in the United States, the largest outbreak  peaked at 23 cases (Minnesota outbreak). However, this year, in addition to this outbreak in New York City, there has already been another large outbreak in North Carolina, with at least 23 cases.

With these very large outbreaks and other smaller outbreaks, it should come as no surprise that we have already surpassed last year's total number of measles cases. While there were 54 cases in 2012, the CDC has already reported 75 cases in their latest Morbidity and Mortality Report for 2013. As of May 24, the provisional case count from the CDC was already up to 91 though!

And not surprisingly, measles outbreaks continue in other parts of the United States. Colorado is reporting its first case of measles since 2006, a traveler from India, who may have exposed others at the Sky Ridge Medical Center and a local clinic.

Or perhaps it should be surprising, as measles is a vaccine-preventable disease.

Get Educated. Get Vaccinated. Stop the Outbreaks.

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Measles is Back and so are the Consequences
Measles Outbreaks
Avoiding Measles