virsight hearing - Motor Vehicle Hazard Archive Project

92
ol those persons had any other mark of injury on them except that
related directlv to the seatbelt-the lapbelt.
The reason ;hy the lapbelt is such a dangerous device and ought
to be removed irnmediately or else augmented by the shoulder
strap is there doesn't seem to be any minor injuries when you're
involved with a lapbelt in an accident. lt's almost all or nothing.
The typical seatbelt injuries that result from lapbelts alone involve
spinal fractures, spinal cord injuries, abdominal musculature
tearing, abdominal intestinal injuries, all of which are severe and
the one that has proved to be fatal is a rupture or t€ar ol the me6enteric
artery and vein which is the blood supply for the bowels
and it happens to be located at tbat level just around or above the
navel which is where these belts tend to ride up and pull in on you.
I have other illustrations I can give you. I think in my stat€ment
I've set them all forward. Everyone of those cases have these features
in common. The person who was injured was weari'ng a lap
belt-only. The person who was injured became far more seriously
injured than anyone else in the car even those who were complete
Iy - unrestrained'or those wearing the shoulder/lap belt.
Everyone of the injuries thai I've detailed in these seven cases
could ipecifically have been avoided had the automobile been
equipped with a shoulder/lap belt in lieu of the_ lapbelt-only. The
saddlit part of all of this is that since 1962 there has been a continuous
strbam of literature that has spewed forth from the automotive,
the medical, the engineering, and the safety community. I b€lieve
the number is ovei 1,000 published articles that speak about
the dangers associated with lapbelts.
Thai'J a 26-year-run. That iras been well-known by the- auto industry
who has contributed to it. There's nothing rew alout this
and yet nothing has been done even though we've had 26 years of
recoid in history. With your mandatory use laws, these cases are
occurring much'more frequently because as mommy and daddy gct
in the frlnt seat and buikle up, kids who most often ride in the
back seat are being told to buckle up too.
The problem is-that mommy ani daddy don't ^know that what
they're-telling their children to buckle up into is far less safe than
what they're provided up front. Thank you.
Mrs. ColuNs lpresidingl. Thank you.
[The prepared itatemeil of Mr. Sakayan followsl