EVERETT — Snohomish County didn’t make it 24 hours into August before a child fell from a window.
This year’s hotter-than-average temperatures are likely to blame for a rash of recent falls, officials said.
Despite prevention efforts, infant and toddler window falls have increased in recent years, said Shawneri Guzman, a trauma specialist at Safe Kids Snohomish County and Providence Regional Medical Center Everett.
Last year, Providence’s emergency room staff treated 21 children younger than 14 after falls. That figure doesn’t include cases where children went to other hospitals or had less serious injuries. Almost all of the victims were 2 or 3 years old, Guzman said. In most cases, the children leaned on window screens on the second stories of apartments and houses.
Screens give parents a false sense of security, Guzman said. Screens can’t withstand much pressure, even the push of a child’s head. Toddlers tend to fall head-first because of their body shape.
Safe Kids Snohomish County distributed nearly 400 window locks last week during National Night Out. They worked with fire departments in Lake Stevens, Mukilteo and Everett, ZIP codes that see a high number of falls.
Of the parents who accepted the devices, “about half said they had thought of getting a lock and just hadn’t done it yet, while the other half had never even considered the danger,” Guzman said.
As of Aug. 4, Harborview Medical Center in Seattle had treated more than 40 children who fell from windows so far this year, a hospital spokeswoman said.
“That’s the number we would typically see over an entire year,” said Dr. Brian Johnston, chief of pediatrics at Harborview.
People may assume that children fall because they weren’t being watched.
“Most of the cases that we’ve seen, the children have been adequately supervised,” Johnston said. “The parents just didn’t recognize the danger.”
Children who are 2 or 3 years old are mobile enough to get to windows but don’t know to be careful. Despite a screen, a window is basically a hole in the wall, he said. He recommends window guards, window stops or window locks. Eventually, he’d like to see window design and building codes changed to address the problem.
Furniture underneath a window, including beds or even a pile of laundry, can become a ladder. About a third of the window-fall cases at Harborview don’t involve serious injuries, Johnston said. Of those that do, about half involve head injuries.
A child who died in south county a few years ago after a fall had been jumping on the bed, Guzman said.
Providence treated five victims in June. Four were treated and released, but one had a skull fracture and went to Harborview. The child survived.
Window locks run about $6 a pair at the hardware store, Guzman said. People also can buy different models online. Windows can get overlooked amid cabinet locks and table bumpers and other needs as parents child-proof their homes, she said.
Window locks are designed so people still can get out in case of a fire.
Rikki King: 425-339-3449; rking@heraldnet.com.
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