8 Injuries that Occur from Defective Playground Equipment in Iowa
Children have fun at playgrounds, but when a swing set, slide, ladder, or monkey bars are defective, a fun day out with your child may turn into a visit to the emergency room. Although most modern-day playgrounds are made to with rubber, wood, plastic, and even organic materials, there are still things that can go terribly wrong and cause playground injuries in Iowa to innocent children.
Defective Playground Injury Statistics
A review of playground equipment injuries in participating hospitals in the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System found that 22,728 emergency rooms visits from 2002 to 2004 were caused by playground equipment. The most common injuries resulted from swings, slides and monkey bars, and 89% of these child injuries were caused by pieces of equipment.
This study examined the five most common injuries from playground equipment, which were fractures, lacerations, contusions and abrasions, sprains, and traumatic brain injuries.
These injuries generally occur when playground equipment is found to be defective, typically due to poor manufacturing, faulty design, flawed parts, poor construction, inadequate maintenance or lack of safety provisions.
Iowa Playground Accidents Caused by Defective Equipment
Since playgrounds can be found at parks, schools, day care centers, fast food restaurants, community neighborhoods, and more, parents of children need to be aware of defective playground equipment that may include slides, swings, ladders, tower platforms, monkey bars, seesaws, sand pits, rope climbing structures and more.
Some of the most common Cedar Rapids playground injuries from defective equipment include:
- Lead paint poisoning from high levels of lead paint used in playground equipment
- Entrapment between bars
- Entanglement from hooks, screws, or bolts that are exposed
- Splinters from wood surfaces
- Burns from metal surfaces that can become too hot for children's hands to touch
- Cuts from sharp edges and corners on the equipment
- Crush injuries from equipment with moving parts, such as a seesaw
- Trip and fall injuries from change in surface elevation or from exposed hazards
If your child has been injured in one of these common playground injuries, it could have been caused by defective playground equipment. You may be able to hold a negligent party responsible for your child's injuries, which could also help prevent another child from suffering the same type of injury your child sustained.
Call an experienced Iowa product liability lawyer to speak with a skilled attorney about your rights if your child suffered injuries from defective playground equipment. Call the law offices of Brady Preston Gronlund at (319) 866-9277, and we will provide you with a free legal evaluation.
