March 25, 2010
Texting while driving ban advances
BY JOSH HAFENBRACK
Sun-Sentinel
TALLAHASSEE — Drivers, put away those Black-Berrys and iPhones. A ban on texting while driving took a crucial step forward Wednesday in the Florida Legislature.
The Senate Transportation Committee unanimously approved a ban (SB 448) on reading or sending e-mails and text messages while behind the wheel. Texting would be a secondary offense, so drivers could only be cited if they’re pulled over for something else, such as speeding.
“I don’t like to legislate personal behavior and I have resisted these types of distracted driving bills over the years, but frankly I’ve gotten hit myself,” said Sen. Nancy Detert, R-Venice. “I think we’ve all seen the effects of texting while driving. They’re changing lanes and they’re a lot worse than drunk drivers.”
The ticket for a first texting- while-driving offense would be $30 plus court costs, which vary by county. On the second offense, the fine would double to $60 and the driver would get three points on his or her license.
Studies have shown texting slows down driver reaction time and increases the likelihood of an accident. Numerous states, including California, Illinois and New York, already have a texting ban.
Florida’s texting ban would take effect Oct. 1, if approved by the Legislature. Gov. Charlie Crist supports the ban.
March 12, 2010
Tips and Techniques for Driving in Rain
When the road is wet, the film of the water on the asphalt causes tires to lose traction. Less obvious is the fact that rain reduces driver perception — it’s harder to see through the rain — and also decreases visibility through its action on headlights, windshields and the road itself. While most people know to slow down in the rain, there are definitely other tips that will help keep you, and those who share the road with you, from becoming a statistic.
•Exercise extreme caution after a long dry spell. During a dry period, engine oil and grease build up on the road over time. When mixed with water from a new rainfall, the road becomes extremely slick. Continued rainfall will eventually wash away the oil, but the first few hours can be the most dangerous.
•Allow for more travel time. You should plan to drive at a slower pace than normal when the roads are wet. Keep in mind that traffic is likely to be moving slower as well. There’s also the possibility that your preplanned route may be flooded or jammed. Whatever the case, rushing equals higher risk.
•Brake earlier and with less force than you would normally. Not only does this increase the stopping distance between you and the car in front of you, it also lets the driver behind you know that you’re slowing down. Also, be more meticulous about using turn signals, so that other drivers know your intentions, and take turns and curves with less speed than you would in dry conditions.
•Most of America’s roads are crowned in the middle, which means that the water will run off to the sides. If possible, stay toward the middle of the road to avoid deep standing puddles.
•Don’t use cruise control. If you hydroplane, there’s the chance your car could actually accelerate. Cruise control also allows drivers to be less vigilant and to take their foot away from the pedals — not a great idea when reaction time is so important.
Give a truck or bus extra distance. Their extra-large tires can create enough spray to block your vision completely. Avoid passing one, but if you must pass, do it as quickly as safety allows.
February 24, 2010
Tire Recall
NHTSA Campaign ID Number: 10T002
Toyo Tire Holdings of Americas, Inc. is recalling certain Nitto Terra Grappler All Terrain, size 305/50R20 120S, Toyo Open Country A/T and Toyo Proxes ST II, size 305/50R20. Some of the subject tires may have been produced with a wrinkle in the upper sidewall area of the tires. Under certain circumstances, this wrinkle may eventually lead to a crack in the sidewall. If a crack develops and is left undetected, the tire may fail, potentially causing a crash, possibly resulting in injury or death. Toyo will notify owners and replace the affected tires free of charge, which includes mounting and balancing. The safety recall is expected to begin on or about February 22, 2010. Owners may contact Nitto customer hotline at 1-888-529-8200 or Toyo customer hotline at 1-800-442-8696.
January 13, 2010
HIGHWAY FATALITIES CONTINUE TO DECLINE IN FLORIDA
~ Preliminary figures show crash fatalities statistic hits an 18-year low ~
Florida ended 2009 with 2,570 traffic crash fatalities, the lowest in 18 years, according to preliminary data from the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. By comparison, the 2008 preliminary traffic fatalities totaled 2,986 when reported last January. While the number of crash fatalities is similar to 1992’s number, the Sunshine State’s population grew by approximately five million residents.
“The Department continues its work to provide a safer Florida for everyone who shares our roadways, and Floridians should be encouraged by this downward trend in fatalities,” said DHSMV Executive Director Julie L. Jones. “We are committed to providing the safest possible driving environment by educating drivers, licensing those who prove they are competent and qualified, and enforcing the traffic laws.”
The final count for 2009 will be made available later this year when the Department publishes its annual Traffic Crash Statistics Report 2009. Reports from previous years are available online at www.flhsmv.gov/html/safety.html.
“One of the easiest ways for motorists to stay safe on the road is to buckle up,” said Florida Highway Patrol Director, Colonel John Czernis. “We encourage motorists to take precautions, such as fastening their safety belts and ensuring their vehicles are properly maintained. The FHP is working in partnership with all law enforcement agencies statewide, and we are aggressively patrolling to remove dangerous drivers from Florida roadways who pose unnecessary and unlawful risks to others.”
In an effort to reduce crashes, state troopers not only enforce the law, but also educate the public on safe driving habits. They talk to groups about traffic safety, conduct demonstrations using the rollover simulator and DUI goggles, show parents how to properly install car seats and more. The Department’s current education campaigns, such as Drive with CARE for teen drivers and their parents (www.flhsmv.gov/teens/), are designed to raise awareness of specific Florida traffic laws.
The Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles provides highway safety and security through excellence in service, education and enforcement. The Department is leading the way to a safer Florida through the efficient and professional execution of its core mission: the issuance of driver licenses, vehicle tags and titles and operation of the Florida Highway Patrol. To learn more about DHSMV and the services offered, visit www.flhsmv.gov.
December 23, 2009
Holiday Driving Safety Quiz
Answers Below
We don’t need to remind you that this weekend will be a heavy drinking one — if not for you, at least for many drivers on the road. But we would like to take this time to remind you — or perhaps even teach you — of some startling facts about drinking and driving. Did you know, for instance, that alcohol-related motor vehicle crashes injure someone every two minutes? Or that three of every 10 Americans will be involved in an alcohol-related crash at some time in their lives?
Here’s a quiz to test your knowledge about other drinking-and-driving facts. You’ll find the correct answers below this post (no peeking!).
1. True or False: To legally operate a motor vehicle in the United States, your blood alcohol concentration (BAC) must be lower than .08 percent.
2. On average, a driver makes over how many decisions per mile?
A. 50
B. 75
C. 150
D. 200
3. Nearly how many people are arrested each year in the U.S. for driving while intoxicated (DWI)?
A. 500,000
B. 750,000
C. 1,000,000
D. 1,500,000
4. An average 170-pound man typically must have more than how many drinks in one hour on an empty stomach to reach a .08 percent BAC level?
A. 1
B. 2
C. 3
D. 4
5. An average 137-pound woman reaches .08 percent BAC after about how many drinks in an hour on an empty stomach?
A. 1
B. 2
C. 3
D. 4
6. Alcohol-related motor vehicle crashes kill someone every ____ minutes.
A. 9
B. 21
C. 31
D. 45
7. Alcohol-related motor vehicle crashes injure someone every ____ minutes.
A. 2
B. 9
C. 18
D. 27
8. How many out of every 10 Americans will be involved in an alcohol-related crash at some time in their lives?
A. 1
B. 2
C. 3
D. 4
9. What percent of fatal crashes involved alcohol in 2005?
A. 15
B. 22
C. 39
D. 79
10. What percent of persons killed or injured in crashes from midnight to 3 a.m. were alcohol-related in 2005?
A. 46
B. 55
C. 68
D. 75
11. True of False: January and December were the months with the highest crash rates in 2005.
12. True or False: Christmas and New Year’s Day were the holiday periods with the highest numbers of persons killed in alcohol-related motor vehicle crashes in 2005.
13. True or False: Wearing your seatbelt can reduce your risk of dying in a traffic crash by about 50 percent.
1. True: Operating a motor vehicle at or above a BAC of .08 percent is a criminal offense in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. .08 percent is the level at which the fatal crash risk significantly increases and the majority of drivers, even experienced drinkers, are seriously impaired with regard to critical driving tasks including: braking, steering, lane changing, judgment, and response time.
2. Answer: D
3. Answer: D
4. Answer: D
5. Answer: C
6. Answer: C
7. Answer: A
8. Answer: C
9. Answer: C
10. Answer: D
11. True: In 2005, December was the month with the highest crash rate (247), followed by January (238), November (228), February (222), and October (212)
12. False: In 2005, more people were killed in alcohol-related motor vehicle crashes during the Memorial Day, Fourth of July, Labor Day, and Thanksgiving holiday periods than both the Christmas and New Year’s Day holiday periods.
13. True: Wearing your seatbelt can reduce your risk of dying in a traffic crash by 45 percent in a car and as much as 60 percent in a truck or SUV.
December 17, 2009
Holiday Safety Tips
It’s that time of year! Friends, family, shopping, dining and…crime? While anytime is a good time to think about personal safety and crime prevention, Philip DeBerard would like to remind citizens of some easy techniques that will help keep them and their property safe during the holidays!
CAR PROWL PREVENTION
• When you exit or enter your parked vehicle, take a moment to look around the area.
• Turn off and lock your car whenever you have to walk away from it. This includes at gas pumps, ATM machines, etc. Never leave your car idling.
• Before leaving your parked car, always remove the keys, roll up the windows and lock the car.
• Leave No Valuables in Your Car. Never leave valuables in your car. Items of little or no value to you still look inviting to a thief. Even pocket change is enough of an enticement for some thieves.
• If you must leave valuables in your car (say you’re out shopping and still have some stops to make), make sure that nothing of value is within plain view. Place items in your car trunk out of sight. Do this when you get to your car, rather than waiting until you park at your next stop. Often, people will arrive at their destination and then put items in the trunk. They’ve just shown anyone who may be around that they just put valuables in the trunk and then walked away from their vehicles. So, if you are going to put something in your trunk, place it in before you get to your destination so you don’t show everyone that you’ve just put valuables in your trunk.
• Don’t leave accessories visible in your car. You may have taken the Laptop or IPod in with you, but if you leave the USB cables for your laptop or earbuds for the IPod in the back seat, the offender may think those items are in the car and break in anyway.
• Think about how the GPS is mounted in your car. If the mounting for the GPS is visible, the thief may think the GPS is in the glove box or under the seat and may break in to try to get it. Have removable mounting for the GPS and put that out of sight as well.
• If possible, store your car in a closed and locked garage. Make a habit of locking your garage door and car doors.
• If your car is stored in a carport or parked near your house, leave your exterior lights on throughout the night.
• If you park on the street, choose a well-lit, open space even if it means adding additional street/yard lighting & trimming back trees/bushes that block your view of your vehicle.
• If you park in a paid lot, use lots that have attendants.
• Consider replacing the light fixture closest to your car with a motion detector unit. Motion detectors are a good psychological deterrents since the normal assumption of a person seeing a light come on is that someone has seen them. Additionally, the light makes the prowler or thief more visible.
• You may want to consider an alarm system for the car. An alarm will not prevent anyone from gaining entry or damaging the car, but the noise of the alarm will draw attention to the car and therefore to the thief. Additionally, many alarm systems have a blinking red light mounted on the dash. That visible indicator may be a deterrent to would be thieves.
December 9, 2009
Bayer Consumer Care Voluntarily Recalls One Lot of Combination Package of Alka-Seltzer Plus® Day & Night Cold Formula Liquid GelsSingle Lot Affected by Package Labeling Issue
In consultation with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Bayer’s Consumer Care division has begun a voluntary recall of a single product lot of the combination package of Alka-Seltzer Plus® Day & Night Cold Formula Liquid Gels. Bayer initiated the recall after identifying that the labeling on the foil blister card of certain packages within the lot (less than 4 percent) were printed with the label reversed. All individual liquid filled capsules are imprinted correctly.
The affected Alka-Seltzer Plus product lot number can be found on both the interior blister package (in black text adjacent to the expiration date) as well as on the exterior carton containing the blister packaging (embossed on the side panel under the Bayer logo)
Product Name: Alka-Seltzer Plus Day & Night Liquid Gels
Package size: 20 liquid filled capsules per carton (12 day formulation capsules and 8 night formulation capsules)
UPC#: 016500537779
Lot #: 296939L
Expiration: 5/11
This product was sold only in the U.S. at retail outlets nationwide.
This recall does not impact any Alka-Seltzer Plus Day & Night Cold Formula Effervescent products, individually packaged Alka-Seltzer Plus Day Non-Drowsy Cold Formula products, individually packaged Alka-Seltzer Plus Night Cold Formula products, or any other lot of Alka-Seltzer Plus Day & Night Cold Formula Liquid-Gels.
The company initiated an investigation following consumer reports and found that in a limited number of combination packages of Alka-Seltzer Plus Day and Night Cold Formula Liquid Gels from a single lot, the information on the underside of the blister package was reversed. Therefore, the label for the green Night product appears under some of the blue Day product and vice versa. As such, there is a risk that consumers may not be aware of the warnings of an antihistamine in the product that could cause drowsiness.
Consumers who purchased combination packages of Alka-Seltzer Plus Day and Night Cold Formula Liquid Gels from the lot included in this recall (details below) should stop using the product and contact Bayer with any questions or for instructions on a refund or replacement. Consumers should contact our Consumer Relations Call Center at 1(800) 986-3307 (available Monday – Friday 8:30 AM – 5:30PM eastern standard time.) Any consumer with a medical concern or questions should contact their healthcare provider.
About Bayer Consumer Care
The Consumer Care division of Bayer HealthCare, is headquartered in Morristown, New Jersey, USA. Bayer Consumer Care is among the largest marketers of over-the-counter medications and nutritional supplements in the world. Some of the most trusted and recognizable brands in the world today come from the Bayer portfolio of products. These include Aspirin, ALEVE®, Alka-Seltzer®, Midol®, One A Day® Vitamins, and Flintstones™ vitamins.
Bayer HealthCare, a subsidiary of Bayer AG, is one of the world’s leading, innovative companies in the healthcare and medical products industry and is based in Leverkusen, Germany. The company combines the global activities of the Animal Health, Consumer Care, Diabetes Care and Pharmaceuticals divisions. The pharmaceuticals business operates under the name Bayer Schering Pharma and as Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals in the US and Canada. Bayer HealthCare’s aim is to discover and manufacture products that will improve human and animal health worldwide.
October 14, 2009
Ford recall hits 4.5 million more vehicles on fire hazard – Oct. 13, 2009:
“Ford recall hits 4.5 million cars. Automaker issues largest single recall ever due to a faulty cruise control switch that could lead to a fire.”
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — Ford issued the largest single recall in its history Tuesday as drivers of an additional 4.5 million vehicles were alerted about a fire hazard from a faulty switch.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said this was the eighth recall, involving a total of 16 million Ford Motor (F, Fortune 500) vehicles, concerning the cruise control deactivation switch manufactured by Texas Instruments (TXN, Fortune 500).
The faulty switch can leak hydraulic fluid, overheat, smoke and then burn, and risks causing a fire even when the ignition is turned off, parked and unattended, the NHTSA said.
The risk is elevated for 1.1 million Windstars that were subject to a government investigation, said Ford spokesman Wes Sherwood.
“We determined with the government that there is a low risk of fires for those vehicles,” Sherwood said. “The other 3.4 million vehicles are the remaining vehicles that have the Texas Instrument switch, so we’re recalling them to reassure customers and prevent future recalls.”
Sherwood added that Ford has always gone beyond recalling only the cars that present a risk.
While the company does not discuss its current suppliers, Sherwood said that Ford vehicles did not use the Texas Instrument switch in post-2003 models.
NHTSA said Ford drivers should look for warnings of possible imminent fires, including malfunctioning cruise control systems and brake lights and antilock braking system and brake light warnings on the dashboard. The safety agency also said difficulty in getting the vehicle out of the park mode should be treated as a warning.
“I urge customers to pay attention to this warning and bring the affected models in to have them repaired as soon as possible,” said Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, in a statement
0:00 /1:06Ford to build new plant in China
Ford is notifying customers and instructing them to take vehicles to dealers for a complimentary installation of a fused wiring harness that will eliminate the risk of fires, the NHTSA said.
The safety recall is expected to begin around Oct. 26. Owners may contact Ford at 1-800-392-3673 or NTHSA’s vehicle safety hotline at 1-888-327-4236 or visit http://www.safercar.gov.
Tuesday’s recall includes the following Ford models: 1995-2003 Windstars, 2000-2003 Excursion diesels, 1993-1997 and 1999-2003 F-Super Duty diesels, 1992-2003 Econolines, 1995-2002 Explorers and Mercury Mountaineers, 1995-1997 and 2001-2003 Rangers and 1994 F35 motorhomes.
