Kaweah Delta team helping parents install car seats

VISALIA, Calif. (KFSN) -- This week is Child Passenger Safety Week, and one South Valley hospital is making it easier for parents to feel comfortable knowing their children are secure in cars.

When Kaweah Delta Security Officer Lead Edward Cordeiro inspects car seats, he almost always finds something wrong, even if parents are sure they installed it correctly.

Case in point-Kaweah Delta's team of licensed child passenger seat technicians, which has grown to five members of its security team, has only found two correctly installed seats out of the 94 they've checked this year.

He says one of the most common problems is a seat that moves around too much.

"Read the instruction manual," Cordeiro said. "It's important, it has a lot of useful information. You also want to check your manual on your vehicle to see what it says on car seats and where they can be installed and how they can be installed."

Cordeiro also recommends checking the manufacture or expiration date on the car seat, as well as the child weight label.

He highly encourages parents to send in the registration card too to receive recall and safety updates.

Videos can help, but the Kaweah Delta team of technicians are available seven days a week.

The California Highway Patrol also has technicians.

They'll host car seat check up events in Porterville and Visalia next month.

A check may have saved the life of five-month-old Vanessa Torres.

She died in a Tulare County accident earlier this year, and The CHP says she was not fitted in the car seat correctly, nor was the seat properly installed.

Doing it the wrong way doesn't make someone a bad parent.

Cordeiro says car seats are complicated pieces of equipment, and he thanks parents for taking the time to learn.

"I do feel good about it," Cordeiro said. "I know that when they leave after I've instructed them, we did the education and they installed it themselves, I know they're leaving safe and I know they're leaving with the knowledge to do it again."

To make an appointment with Kaweah Delta, call 559-802-7520.

CHP car seat check ups:

Porterville:

October 13th 9am-1pm

Walmart-Henderson Avenue

Visalia

October 26th 9am-1pm

Sears parking lot

https://www.trafficsafetymarketing.gov/get-materials/child-safety/child-passenger-safety-week