Sheriff Tim Svenson of the Yamhill County Sheriff's Office announced today that his office will join with other law enforcement agencies state wide February 9th to February 18th, 2018 to encourage the use of safety belts and child restraints as the simplest and most effective way to prevent crash related injuries and fatalities.

* Oregon law requires all occupants to use safety restraints or a child safety system appropriate for their size. Law enforcement agencies throughout Oregon will be working overtime to focus on proper safety belt use including child seat use, during a nationwide traffic enforcement "blitz" occurring day and night.
* This enhanced enforcement is made possible through grant funding of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and administered by Oregon State Sheriff's Association
* Roadside observations of belt use among Oregon travelers in 2016 revealed 96% of travelers use safety belts. But despite this high use rate among the general population, Oregon crash data for 2015 shows lack of belt use in 27% of daytime and 50% of night time crash. ODOT estimates that at least half of those who died unbelted or 67 persons could have been saved if everyone used safety belts on every trip.
* Safety belts, used correctly, can reduce the risk of major crash injury or death by up to sixty-five percent. Belts are even more effective when used in combination with airbag systems and other not-so-obvious occupant protection features designed into today's vehicles.
* Child seats may increase crash survival by 71% for infants under one year old and by up to 59% for toddlers aged one to four. Booster seats may reduce the chance of nonfatal injury among four to eight year olds by 45% compared to safety belts used alone.
* Children under one year or weighing less than twenty pounds must ride in a rear-facing child seat. A child over forty pounds must use either a child seat or booster until they reach age eight or 4' 9" tall and the adult belt fits them correctly. If you are unsure whether your child is ready to transition to an adult belt system, use the easy five-step test here: http://www.carseat.org/Boosters/630.htm
* For help installing child car seats, consult the seat manufacturer's instructions, your vehicle owner's manual, or visit a local child seat fitting station listed at: http://www.nhtsa.gov/apps/cps/index.htm or at http://oregonimpact.org/car-seat-resources/