1000 SW Jackson Suite 230
Topeka, KS 66612-1274
(785) 296-1223
(785) 296-8649 (FAX)

Coordinator:
Jan Stegelman

Executive Committee:
Randall Bolin
NHTSA Region VII

Dennis Cooley, MD
Medical Advisor
American Academy of
Pediatrics, Kansas
Chapter

John Drees
Douglas County
SAFE KIDS Coalition

John Halbran
Kansas Safety Belt
Education Office

Jim Keating
Kansas State
Firefighters Association

Elena Nuss
Kansas State
Fire Marshal's Office

Cindy Samuelson
Kansas Hospital Association

Celebrate Safely this New Years Eve

What goes UP will come DOWN cautions Safe Kids Kansas

All across Kansas, families are preparing to ring in the New Year. While most families celebrate the holidays safely and responsibly, some celebrate with a dangerous tradition, shooting off firearms into the air. "Celebratory gunfire is usually not malicious but it carries serious dangers and penalties," says Jan Stegelman, Safe Kids Kansas coordinator. "Unfortunately, most individuals involved in celebrating New Year's Eve with gunfire do not realize that their actions endanger themselves as well as their family and neighbors."

"It is important to remember that what goes up will come down, and when a bullet comes down it is traveling at a fatal velocity," says Stegelman. For example, a bullet fired into the air can climb two miles and remain in flight for more than a minute. The bullet can travel and fall up to 2 ½ miles away. When it falls back to earth, the bullet can reach a speed of 300 to 700 feet per second. A speed of only 200 feet per second is sufficient to penetrate the human skull.

Safe Kids Kansas reminds everyone to celebrate safely this New Years Eve and be sure to report any instances of shots fired in your neighborhood to local law enforcement. For more information about firearm safety, visit www.safekids.org.

Safe Kids Kansas, Inc. is a nonprofit Coalition of 67 statewide organizations and businesses dedicated to preventing accidental injuries to Kansas children ages 0-14. Local coalitions and chapters are located in Allen, Anderson, Atchison, Clay, Dickinson, Doniphan, Douglas, Ellis, Ford, Franklin, Geary, Jackson, Jefferson, Johnson, Leavenworth, Marion, Meade, Mitchell, Montgomery, Nemaha, Osage, Pottawatomie, Republic, Rice, Riley, Saline, Smith, Shawnee, Wabaunsee, Wilson and Woodson Counties, as well as the cities of Chanute, Emporia, Leavenworth, Norton, Pittsburg, the Wichita Area and the Metro Kansas City Area. Safe Kids Kansas a member of Safe Kids Worldwide, a global network of organizations whose mission is to prevent accidental childhood injury.

www.kansassafekids.org