By Stephanie Brown and David Wolf, Attorney
Published by Child Injury Lawyer Network
Each week in Atlanta, Georgia, people are injured on escalators—often those people are children. While recent reports have blamed the popular soft-sided flexible clogs worn by children, escalator injuries are an ongoing problem that did not begin with the advent of the suspiciously ugly shoes. While the escalator industry has voluntarily created new standards for reducing the size of the gap between escalator steps and the escalator wall, these new standards do not have any impact on escalators built before 2000.
Meanwhile, children continue to suffer dangerous entanglement injuries in Georgia escalators. In the summer of 2008, a three year old child’s foot was sucked into the gap at the side of the escalator in a MARTA station. The child’s foot was mangled, leaving nothing but a nub where her small toe should be. There have been at least seven cases this year in Georgia involving children’s feet becoming entangled in escalators.
To prevent personal injuries like these to your child, keep feet away from the sides of steps where entrapment can occur. Learn the location of escalators’ emergency shut-off buttons in case you need to stop the machine in an emergency. The emergency shut off switch is usually at each end of an escalator. Make sure shoes are tied and that clothing doesn’t drag onto escalator stairs. Always hold children’s hands and do not allow them to sit or play on escalators. Malls should be places of shopping not places of serious personal injuries to children.