Gemma Patten (23) of New Plymouth believes her baby’s car seat saved his life.
When I look at photographs of our mangled car, I wonder how any of us survived.
Everything happened so quickly. We were driving to a birthday party and on a difficult bend of road the car swerved, hit a bank and rolled about four times.
When we finally stopped, I realised there was a horrible silence from the back seat where my six-month-old baby, Cannon, was sitting. I looked around and to my absolute astonishment, Cannon was alive and still fast asleep, unaware of the near-death experience we had been through.
The back window had blown out, showering glass everywhere but Cannon remained safely strapped in his car seat. When the ambulance officers arrived, they were amazed at Cannon’s survival.
There’s no doubt he was saved because of his car seat. Without it, he would have been thrown through the windscreen or a side window – and crushed.
Coincidentally, the birthday party we were driving to was for Cannon’s grandma, Gabrielle, who is a Plunket Car Seat Co-ordinator and an expert on car restraints. Gabrielle fitted Cannon’s seat from Plunket. She ensured the locking clip was in the right place and the seat belt was tight enough to hold the seat securely.
The fact Cannon is alive shows it is worth taking the time to make a car seat secure.
I went to hospital and was treated for whiplash in my neck but I was out in time to go to the birthday party. We were a bit late – but at least we made it there.
I shiver when I think how different things could be now. Instead of celebrating a family, my husband Ajarn (30) and I could have been mourning the loss of our beautiful baby boy. *As told to Sally Rainford
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*By law, all children under five should be buckled into approved car seats when travelling in vehicles. Don’t put a child’s car seat in the front passenger side if the car has an airbag, as children can be killed when the airbag inflates. Call your local Plunket for more details on car seats and how to install them.
