Thursday, May 19, 2011

Fairfax County baby killed by falling TV stand

This is a very sad story that I had to share as most people don't think about the dangers these new TVs pose and the solution is simple. Here is an excerpt of the article found here:

http://www.wtop.com/?nid=41&sid=2389850

"A baby boy in Fairfax County has died after a TV stand fell on him Wednesday afternoon."

"The child, which police say was less than a year old, died just before 4 p.m. Thursday. Fairfax County Police say the incident happened in the 4100 block of Chantilly Lace Court in Chantilly. "

If you have a flat panel TV on a TV stand or on a cabinet I can't stress enough that you should attach a cable to the TV and fasten it tight to the wall so the TV cannot fall over on children or animals. Better yet wall mount it and get rid of the TV stand all together. It is very common for kids to be injured by these TVs falling on them. If you don't have kids, consider your visitors or even your dog. Best case is your TV wont get ruined accidentally when someone bumps into it or the stand.

The stands on these new TVs are not very substantial and I'm sure you noticed when it was set up that it seemed inadequate. The reality is that they are in fact VERY inadequate. The TVs should be securely anchored to the wall either on a bracket designed for wall mounting or just simply a cable that is attached to the back of the TV and anchored to one of the wall studs behind it so that it cannot fall over on anyone or on your pet.

Don't think it wont happen to you as it just happened to a local resident and they lost their baby.

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