THE PONCHATOULA TIMES, AUGUST 2, 2012, PAGE 6
Hidden villains at
your playground (part III)
Are we having fun yet
(safely, of course)?
By Don Stedman
To review the two previous articles on "Hidden Villains at Your
Playgrounds", let's identify and define those villains. First, there
is the improper protective fall surface, which is the material used
around and under the play equipment to absorb the impact of the
fall. This directly ties into inadequate use zone and insufficient
equipment spacing that causes
overcrowding of the play areas.
Then, there were hazards due
to protrusions or poor design
causing entanglement of cloth-
ing or items that may be worn
to the playground and entrap-
ment of a child's head or body.
The consequences of these hid-
den villains can be disabling
and even fatal. As you continue
to look for the hidden villains
on your play equipment and the
play area, let's consider condi-
tions that can harbor villains
that are not as serious as the
previous hazards, but can cause
injuries and ruin a happy day
at the playground.
• Tripping hazards that are
commonly found in play areas
are tree roots, embedded rocks,
exposed concrete footings of
the play equipment and even,
abrupt changes in surface el-
evations.
• Moving components on
the playground equipment can
be a hidden villain. Merry-
go-rounds, seesaws and even
swings should be checked regu-
larly for worn, loose, missing
or damaged parts. These situa-
Donald P. Steadman, C.P.S.I.,
C.W.C.P.
BREC Sr. Risk Manager
tions can cause sharp edges and
pinch points that could catch or
crush a child's finger if not cor-
rected in time.
• Then, there are the age-in-
appropriate activities. As men-
tioned before, most equipment
is designed for different ages
that separate the pre-school
children (2-5 years of age) from
the school age children (5-12
years of age). A four year old
child should not be left unat-
tended to climb to an eight foot
platform to negotiate a slide or
other equipment. They can lose
their balance or be rushed by
older children, causing them
to fall from that height. This
equipment was designed for
school age children who have
the capability and confidence
to safely enter and exit the play
equipment. Likewise, older chil-
dren should not use play equip-
ment designed for pre-school
children. Twice I have heard
that the Fire Department had
to be called out to playground
areas to rescue a twelve year
old child too large for a baby
style swing. This type of swing
seat, designed for an infant to
be swung by the parents, looks
like a big thick plastic "Hug-
gies" diaper hanging by the two
chains from the equipment. The
swing had to be cut down at the
chains, and then, both seats
had to be greased so that the
large child could escape from
this posterior hanging ordeal.
Luckily, in these cases the only
identifiable injury was pride.
• Lack of guardrails and
protective barriers will expose
children to preventable falls
to another level or play sur-
face. Protective barriers should
be installed on pre-school age
equipment when the play sur-
face is 30 inches or more from
the lower level. For school age
equipment, protective barriers
are recommended on heights 48
inches or more from the lower
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week
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surface. The largest opening
between barriers on the same
level is 15 inches. Keep in mind
that an opening between 3 inch-
es and 9 inches can cause head
or body entrapment.
If your playground equip-
ment is very old, you may have
equipment not recommended
for use by the Consumer Prod-
uct Safety Commission. Trapeze
bars and long swinging exercise
rings are considered athletic
equipment and should not be
used at playground areas. Also,
Metal animal figure swings
and multiple occupancy swings
have been associated with nu-
merous accidents and injuries
at the playgrounds. I have seen
head injuries, fractures and
contusions with these types
of swings. Free swinging rope
that can form a loop should also
be removed from the play area.
Remember 'WIurphy's Law", If
it can happen, it will happen.
These villains at your play-
ground can be effectively elimi-
nated by the "Triangle of Play-
ground Safety", professional
design and installation of the
equipment, regular and prop-
er maintenance and parental/
adult supervision. For recom-
mendations to safe playground
equipment see the guidelines
from Consumer Product Safety
Commission (www.cpsc.gov)
for public and residential play
equipment and the specifica-
tions from the American Society
of Testing and Materials.
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