October 2006 Archives

A horrific tale most appropriate for Hallow's Eve - on February 23, 2006 in Brooklyn State Supreme Court, four men were arraigned on a series of charges reading like Robert Louis Stevenson’s saga The Body Snatchers. Prosecutors claimed that the men, who worked for a company called Biomedical Tissue Services, had engaged in a modern form of body-snatching. A ghoulish ring trafficking in bones, tissue and other body parts illicitly harvested from corpses at funeral homes throughout New York City potentially raked in millions of dollars selling tendons and ligaments for surgical replacement and bone for dental implants and orthopedic reconstruction procedures, sources familiar with the investigation said.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety estimates more than 1.5 million deer collisions take place each year in the United States, costing approximately $1.1 billion in vehicle damage. In Michigan, the Michigan Deer Crash Coalition estimates that one in seven reported crashes in that state involves a deer -- one every eight minutes. Informal surveys suggest that the actual number may be quite higher, with nearly as many collisions unreported, either because the owner isn't required to by law or because he doesn't have insurance.

You don’t have to spend much time on any major highway before you feel like your vehicle is about to be blown away by the semis racing past you. The American Trucking Associations, the nation’s premier trucking industry trade group, recognizes the significant public safety risk posed by these speed demons and last week petitioned the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to limit the maximum speed of large trucks at the time of manufacture to no more than 68 miles per hour.

Caveat emptor that cadaver! A Connecticut Superior Court judge has ruled in favor of a business accused of providing a defective heart valve for transplantation, saying that such human tissue is not a product for the purposes of a product liability claim. The issue of whether to consider processed tissue a product has been addressed by only a handful of opinions—including a California case and a federal court interpreting Utah law and all have held as the Connecticut court did.

During the 2005-2006 ski season, there were 23 fatalities in the United States due to avalanches. In Colorado, avalanches have occurred every month of the year. If you remember anything about avalanches remember this: avalanche danger is greatest during and shortly after intensive snow falls. Traveling on or below 30 degree slopes during intensive storms is very dangerous -intensive storms are those in which 1” of snow falls per hour.

Many different groups of people, including the very young, participants over age 60, the handicapped and the disabled enjoy ski/snowboard activities. Approximately 10.4 million Americans either ski or snowboard. Final reports indicate that the U.S. ski industry set an all-time national skier visit record of 58.8 million for the 2005/06 season, up 3.5 percent from last season, and up 2.3 percent from the previous record set in 2002/03. As many participants now snowboard as ski. But a day on the slopes can end in the emergency room, or worse. On average, 34 people die each year in the United States while skiing or snowboarding. Another 39 suffer severe, yet nonfatal, injuries, including paralysis and brain trauma.

The classic Halloween image is that of a broadly smiling Jack-O-Lantern, animated by a burning candle. But, reported home candle fires have tripled since their low in 1990. Two-fifths started in the bedroom, while the living room, family room, or den was the leading area of origin for candle fire deaths. Half of the home candle fires occurred after by some type of combustible was too close to the candle; an unattended or abandoned candle was a factor in 18% of these fires. Falling asleep was a factor in 12% of the incidents.

From ghoulies and ghosties,
Long-leggety beasties,
And things that go bump in the night,
Good Lord, deliver us. - Anonymous

The ghouls and goblins will be out in just three short weeks – make sure your trick-or-treaters enjoy a safe and fun Halloween by reviewing these simple safety points.