Every parent has the nagging worry in their back of their mind that the worst could happen to their child at any time. It’s instinctive and keeps your little ones safe, but kids are kids. Their playful nature gives way to plenty of cuts, bruises, scrapes, and other injuries.
That playful nature is at an all-time high at a birthday party, which makes these events more dangerous than most parents think. News headlines also reveal nightmare scenarios that are out of any parent’s control. Here are the horrors of birthday party injuries.
Trips to the Hospital
The least of your worries are simple falls that cause little harm, despite how your child might react to them. There are plenty of ways a parent could find themselves rushing their child to the hospital, though, that are worth your consideration.
The number one thing to watch out for are your surroundings. Playing anywhere but in the comfort of the house or a reasonably flat yard is dangerous. Your child could tumble down a hill, fall out of a tree, or slip on a retaining wall. Those are just a few examples, but they could all cause fractures and broken bones.
Other horrors have happened when children slip away from their parent’s watchful eyes. Not knowing better, kids might wander into the street or get into something they shouldn’t (like kitchen knives, which could warrant a talk with a personal injury attorney). Luckily, you can avoid all of these dangers by being the vigilant parent you are.
The Unknown
While there are dangerous scenarios you can prevent, there are others that no parent could possibly stop. This unknown element is revealed in tragic news headlines from around the nation. Deranged adults stabbing toddlers, drunk drivers crashing through yards, gun violence, and more happen at birthday parties more often than you might think.
In 2017, seven people were shot while celebrating a toddler’s party in Tennessee. The mother died, while a six-year-old was left in critical condition along with several others. In this case, several gunners open fired on the party.
In 2018, a man stormed a three-year-old’s birthday party in Idaho. He stabbed nine people, giving life-threatening injuries to four victims. One of those victims was the birthday girl, who tragically died from her injuries weeks later.
In 2019, 40 people were run over at a birthday party. A fight had ensued between parents, and one of them decided to get into his car and mow them over as they left. Cases like these two are, sadly, not unique. These horrors happen more than you might think when they should never happen at all.
While there might not be anything you can do to prevent your child being injured by a drunk driver or insane individual, there are steps you can take after the fact. Pressing charges and suing might not fix everything, but anyone who would harm children deserves to face justice.