Reply #165: About seatbelts [View All]

[Moonbeam_Starlight]

When I was a kid, no one had to wear seatbelts. Then that federal law passed and TX passed a state law and we had to. I was about 13. So we went out and dug out the seatbelts (didn't even know where to find them in the car!) and started wearing them, strictly out of fear of a big ticket.

Well, it became a habit.

A month ago, I was riding in a friend's van with my daughter in the second row of seats. We were all belted, following all traffic laws, not speeding, going down the road. A red car pulled out right in front of us, turning when it wasn't safe to. We t-boned her on her passenger side going 40 mph. Her 12 year old niece wasn't buckled and neither was she. I will remember for the rest of my life seeing that 12 year old girl's EYES, big as dinner plates, as we neared impact. Both her hands were on the glass. She was killed instantly. There WAS NO PASSENGER SIDE LEFT TO THE CAR (we were in a Dodge conversion van). The driver was thrown from the car and is still in the hospital (was in intensive care). All three of us were fine, except for my abrasions and bruises from behind my right ear, across my chest and down. From what? The seatbelt that kept me from going right through the windshield.

I will NEVER think seatbelts are no big deal again. I always wore them just so as not to get a ticket. No more. One saved my life and kept my daughter and best friend from harm, too.

Edited to add please notice the part where I said the driver in my car was following all safety and traffic rules. She was not speeding, not driving erratically, no adverse weather conditions, middle of the day, nothing distracting her, just driving down the road. And this lady just pulls right out in front of us. Totally not my friend's fault. Your kids would have gone THROUGH the windshield of the car and most likely died.