Safe and Secure

A Michigan company offers temporary tattoos for children, with a twist. The tattoos contain identification and contact information in case the kids are separated from their parents while traveling or separated from a group while on field trips. Tattoos are also available for people with Alzheimer’s Disease.

Designed by a Michigan woman, the tattoos come in six colors, with kits for boys and girls. The tattoos cost about $2 each or $10 for a travel kit that includes six tattoos, a marker for writing a phone number, towelettes to apply the tattoo with and alcohol wipes for removing it. The tattoos generally last for a week, said Cindi Aldrich, who owns Temporary Tattoos With A Purpose. Frey said his daughter’s tattoo started to rub off a little on the way to the airport.

More information from Tattoos With a Purpose

courant.com | Tattoos Give Children Identification That’s Hard To Lose

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety evaluated minivans in side and front impact crash tests. The Toyota Sienna, Nissan Quest, and Honda Odyssey earned a rating of “good” (the highest possible) in side impact tests. The Sienna and Quest earned “best pick” designations for side crashes and the Sienna also won a “best pick” designation for front impacts. Compared to the federal side impact tests, the IIHS tests used a barrier more comparable to today’s average vehicle to simulate a crash.

Federal test doesn’t reflect many real-world crashes: The federal government also conducts side impact tests for consumer information but uses a barrier that was designed in the 1980s when cars represented most vehicles on the road. The height of the barrier’s front end is below the heads of the dummies that measure injury risks in side-struck vehicles. The federal test doesn’t assess the risks of head injury from impacts with vehicles like SUVs and pickups.

IIHS News Release: November 2, 2005

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November is the top month for deer-auto collisions, so it’s time to start watching more carefully as you drive. Deer are not just a danger to property; deer related collisions result in injury and sometimes even death.

The state patrol reported Tuesday that an Ironton man died just east of Brainerd on Highway 210 after a deer crashed through the windshield of his pickup. The 28-year-old was dead at the scene.

This is the worse-case scenario of what continues to be a growing problem. Deer/car collisions rise annually. Unfortunately, so have the number of deaths that result.

In 2004, eight people died from injuries sustained in a deer/car crash. The collisions resulted in 489 personal injuries as well, according to the Department of Public Safety.

Sources: St. Cloud Times |
Roadkill alert sounded

The US State Department has issued a public announcement for travelers heading to Peru, based on a threat by coca growers to strike. Similar strikes in the past have led to problems for foreigners in the area.

Coca growers in Cuzco have called for a “series of actions” from October 18 through about October 20, 2005. Previous calls for strikes by cocaleros in Cuzco have resulted in widespread disruption of ground transportation and closure of the airport. On one recent occasion a group of foreign tourists was involuntarily held captive for several hours by strikers.

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The Safe Travel Institure announced the Safe Passage Travel Companion(TM). Included is an instructional DVD and resource guide showcasing principles and strategies for safe travel, resource CD with vital information including emergency contact procedures and key embassy phone numbers, a pocket reference with strategic reminders of safe travel practices, a travel security pouch. Also included is a free membership to the online resource “Safe Passage NewsLine”. The Institute also offers hostage survival training through the National Hostage Survival Training Center.

Those interested in the Safe Passage Travel Companion may also be interested in these books:

Safe Air Travel Companion

The Safe Travel Book

Safe Travel Institute Announces ‘Safe Passage’: First DVD Designed to Help Travelers Learn to Reduce Risks in Today’s Volatile World: Financial News - Yahoo! Finance

“Today, Americans are more uneasy about traveling than ever before,” said Randy Spivey, director of the Safe Travel Institute. “Currently, there are U.S. State Department Travel Warning Advisories covering 26 countries Americans should avoid… 16 more advisories warn of terrorist activities in the Caribbean, England and Scotland. Added to that is the fact that while Mexico and Brazil are not on either list, they rank high for kidnappings, theft and unsolved crimes. The Safe Travel Institute’s goal is to help consumers and business travelers process this information, learn how to travel safely, and enjoy their travels with a renewed peace of mind. We know that there is danger at some level no matter the destination, but we can help give you the tools to help you be more prepared to handle yourself in business or pleasure travels.”

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Illinois state police have introduced “CHAD” or “Children Have An Identity” stickers which fit on a child safety seat or under a bicycle seat after a 13-month old boy named Chad was involved in an auto accident with his babysitter. The babysitter was killed in the crash and the boy could not be quickly identified. His injuries were untreated for an hour until a family friend happened to walk by his hospital gurney.

The stickers give basic identification and emergency contact information and can also give important information such as allergies to medications.

The Southern Illinoisan

Illinois State Trooper J. D. Murphy said an identification tool promoted by state police is a CHAD - Children Have An Identity - sticker. The stickers are meant to put on the back of a child safety seat, but also fit underneath a bicycle seat and are appropriate for adults as well.

“Unfortunately, we get a lot of our innovative ideas when something bad happens,” Murphy said.

The CHAD stickers were introduced after a boy named Chad was involved in a vehicle accident with a babysitter and could not be immediately identified.

More information on identification and emergency contact programs at this site.

Hertz is offering Hertz #1 Club and #1 Club Gold members 3 free months subscription to “Clear”, the TSAs Registered Traveler Program which allows expedited security screening for regular pre-screened travelers using biometric identification. The program is currently being operated on a pilot basis at the Orlando airport.

PRESS RELEASE Travel Clear With Hertz
The Transportation Security Administration’s (TSA) Registered Traveler Program is supported by the National Business Travel Association. With more than 6 million frequent business travelers potentially eligible for the registered traveler program, Clear provides enrolled members with rapid processing through new airport screening procedures and improves the security screening process at airports by helping the TSA align screeners and resources with potential risks. Clear allows approved travelers to have expedited access through airport security.

The Greater Orlando Aviation Authority (GOAA) is the first airport in the country to participate in a privately run pilot program of the TSA’s Registered Traveler Program. The program is operated with the approval and cooperation of the TSA and GOAA.

A new venture, Safe Harbor Publishing LLC, has been formed to produce DVDs and other material to help travelers learn to deal with threats like abduction, how to avoid being a target for crime and how to survive if abducted.

Spokane Journal of Business - The Business Newspaper For The Inland Northwest

Included in the first package, which will sell for between $50 and $60, will be a 30-minute-to-40-minute DVD telling travelers how not to become a target for abduction and how to survive if they do, a travel companion resource guide, a passport neck-wallet security pouch, and an informational CD, says Spivey. That initial package will be called Safe Passage.

NADA Auto Dealers are holding child safety seat inspections throughout September, as
part of Child Passenger Safety Month. The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration says that more than 40,000 children under the age of four and 50,000 between the ages of four and eight are injured or killed in car crashes each year. 40% of those who die or are seriously injured are completely unrestrained.

radKIDS is a program is a safety program to help children protect themselves against violence that goes way beyond the trite and practically useless “don’t talk to strangers” strategy. One graduate of the program, Candy, managed to escape an attacker by fighting her way free. Attackers rely on kids to cooperate simply because they are adults.
radKIDS: Children’s Safety Education

The radKIDS Program is providing children with hope, options, and practical skills to RECOGNIZE, AVOID, and, if necessary, ESCAPE violence and abuse.

The radKIDS program teaches many topics including:

• Safety in the home and vehicle safety
• School safety, including bullying
• “Out-and-about safety,” including water- and pedestrian-safety education
• Realistic defense against abduction
• Good, bad and uncomfortable touch
• Stranger Tricks, including physical defense against abduction
• Self-realization of personal power