With a weekend of warm weather in the forecast for Metro Vancouver, first responders are offering some safety tips to prevent children from falling from windows or balconies.
Marilyn Oberg, paramedic chief with B.C. Emergency Health Services, said there have already been three 911 calls this year about falling children.
"When a call for help comes to our communications centres, the tension in the room changes palpably," she said.
"It's an awful feeling in your stomach when you're going to the call, because you know how deeply it will affect the children, the children's family, the neighbourhood — our communities."
At B.C. Children's Hospital, neurosurgeon Dr. Ash Singhal has seen a range of serious injuries, from broken bones to internal bleeding, and even brain damage or death.
But he said most of those injuries are preventable with a little bit of preparation.
"Children are naturally curious, that's the great thing about them, but that curiosity gets them into some trouble. Children can climb before they can walk," Singhal said.
Oberg and Singhal offered a few tips for making homes safer for children in warm weather:
- Only open windows wide enough to fit an adult fist, and use a locking device to prevent them from opening further. No window screen can support a child's weight;
- Move furniture away from windows so that curious little ones aren't tempted to lean out;
- And remove furniture from patios and balconies when it's not in use, so children can't climb up and over the railing.