Put Child Safety On The "To-Do" List This Spring
There's more to spring cleaning than sprucing up
NEW YORK, March 19, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Amidst the dusting and scrubbing of spring cleaning this year, it is imperative for parents and caregivers to check their home for any lurking household dangers. The Window Covering Safety Council (WCSC) is reminding families to check their window coverings for exposed or dangling cords that can pose a strangulation hazard to infants and young children.
According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), corded window coverings are one of the top five hidden hazards in American homes. Spring cleaning presents parents and caregivers with as good time as any to install new window coverings and to retrofit or replace old ones with today's safer products. Installing only cordless window coverings in a home with young children is the best way to prevent any accidents from occurring.
While undertaking standard spring cleaning chores and regular home maintenance, keep in mind that there are other potential household hazards to children that should not be overlooked:
- Secure all bookcases, shelving and heavy furniture. Place the heaviest items on lower shelves and in bottom drawers.
- Many houseplants can be poisonous, and flowerpots can cause injury if they tip over. Be sure to double check that your plants are safe and that planters are out of reach of little hands.
- Safely store harmful house cleaners and detergents out of the reach of children and in securely fastened child-proofed cabinets.
- Keep children away from areas you are cleaning and open windows to ventilate the room.
- Install only cordless window coverings in homes with young children.
For more information on window cord safety or to order free retrofit kits, visit www.windowcoverings.org or call toll-free at 1-800-506-4636. Connect with WCSC on Facebook and Twitter for more home safety ideas, and to help pass safety on.
The Window Covering Safety Council (WCSC) is a coalition of major U.S. manufacturers, importers and retailers of window coverings. The Council assists and supports its members in the industry's ongoing efforts to encourage the use of cordless products in homes with young children, its redesign of corded products, and to support the national ANSI/WCMA standard for the safety of corded window coverings. WCSC's activities in no way constitute an assumption of any legal duty owed by its members or any other entity. Consumers having need to retrofit rather than replace their older window coverings can order free retrofit devices through WCSC's website at www.windowcoverings.org or its toll-free phone line at 1-800-506-4636.
Contact: Dan Fernandez
212-297-2121
[email protected]
SOURCE Window Covering Safety Council (WCSC)
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