Nov 28, 2006 6:58 pm US/Central
I-TEAM: Escalator Accidents Often Unreported
by Terri Gruca
(WCCO)
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Few states do a complete job tracking escalator accidents because it's not required.
CBS4
Safety experts estimate as many as 70 people are injured every day nationwide riding escalators. It's hard to know how many injuries happen here in Minnesota because many accidents go unreported.
Spend anytime watching escalators, as the I-TEAM did, and you realize how many kids don't ride them correctly. We spotted kids walking in opposite the opposite direction of the moving steps, dragging their feet along the side of the escalator wall, others slide their feet when they get to end of the escalator. Most of them get lucky.
One Girl's Close CallKatie Kickhafer's close call came this summer on the way to a Lynx basketball game.
"I was scared," the 8-year-old said. "It felt like it was sucking into something."
"Her foot got stuck. The Croc got stuck in the escalator," said Kaylene Kickhafer, Katie's mom.
One look at Katie's shoe -- the entire front ripped off in one jagged chunk -- and you might be amazed she walked away, but she did despite the fact that the entire top and front of her Croc shoe was ripped off.
"Katie says she thinks her toes weren't all the way forward so she was able to get her foot out. Otherwise, I don't know," said Kaylene.
2-Year-Old Seriously InjuredYoung Madeline knows all too well.
"I was going down the escalator," Madeline remembers. "And my foot got caught."
The 2-year-old's shoe was sucked into one of the main escalators at Maplewood Mall in August, when she was just halfway down, standing next to her father holding his hand.
"Her bones were crushed," recalls Suzanne, Madeline's mother. "The tendons severed so her foot was like in two pieces."
Both of these escalator accidents happened within a month of each other, yet the state only had record of Madeline's injury and two others. Few states do a complete job tracking escalator accidents because it's not required. Currently in Minnesota, neither are yearly inspections.
Yet problems are easy to spot. The I-TEAM found missing metal teeth at the bottom of one escalator, which could make it easier for items to get caught. It is more important than ever that you pay attention and make sure your children ride escalators properly.
Teaching Your Children To Ride ProperlyTo do that you should hold the hand of your child and stand as close to the center of the step as you can. Children should not hold the railing because it may force them to stand too close to the edge.
Make sure shoe laces and loose clothing are tucked away so they don't get caught.
Then, make sure you completely step off when the escalator reaches the bottom. Do not drag your feet.
The I-TEAM looked at hundreds of cases and found kids wearing dress shoes, flip flops, any kind of soft rubber soled shoe. We also heard from a viewer who had this happen to her 35 years ago. She was 5 years old at the time and her sneaker was sucked into an escalator. She had to have surgery on her foot and is still dealing with some of those issues.
The number of injuries may seem small compared to how many people ride escalators, but the seriousness of the entrapment makes this a problem many safety experts say deserves attention.
You can print out a free coloring book which teaches your children how to properly ride escalators
here.
(© MMVI, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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