Around 200,000 children are sent to the emergency room each year due to playground accidents, and around 15 kids annually will die from these injuries. Here are some stories and examples that illustrate the various things that can go wrong:

Boy Dies in Swing
In Sedalia, Missouri, a 9-year-old boy was killed after apparently becoming entangled in a rope swing while playing with siblings at his home. The boy’s father and a neighbor performed CPR until emergency help arrived, but he could not be revived. (USA Today, 6-7-2010, p. 5A)

Boy Killed While Playing Tag
In Omaha, Nebraska, a 10-year-old boy was killed in what can only be described as a freak accident while playing in his neighbor’s yard. Garrett Schomer was apparently playing tag with his friends one late Sunday afternoon when he ran into a metal rod that was protruding from a playhouse. The rod impaled his head, and he was pronounced dead at the Nebraska Medical Center. (USA Today, 4-15-2008, p. 6A)

Girl Dies After Fall From X-Wave On School Playground
In Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, several school districts either had removed or were considering removing a piece of spinning playground equipment that led to the death of a child. Alyssa Avila, a 9-year-old fourth-grader from Wyandotte, died when she fell from the device called an x-wave and then hit her head when she tried to climb back onto it. (USA Today, 8-26-2010, p.7A)

Safety fact:
Falls cause about 70% of all playground injuries, and 80% of play spaces lack adequate safety surfacing.

* Click here for tips and guidelines on playgrounds

The National Program for Playground Safety has a simple 4-point plan for evaluating your play space or your new playground plans at playgroundsafety.org

* Booby Trapped Playgrounds *

Watch Out for Razerblades
In Columbus, Georgia, police and city workers were investigating after they found 9 razor blades taped to playground equipment in a park. Tony Adams, director of the Parks and Recreation department, said the blades were taped to a slide and other play equipment. Workers planned to search other parks and playgrounds. (USA Today, 5-12-2010, p. 6A) This was likely just a sick prank done by teenagers, and we’ve not encountered any other stories like this, but it’s still a reminder to check your child’s play spaces before they play. No children were injured in this incident.

More Booby Traps

Not too long ago, we reported about parents finding razor blades taped to play equipment on the playground in Columbus, Georgia.  At the time we told parents this was probably just an isolated prank and that we had never encountered anything like it before.  We may have spoken too soon.

This week in Pueblo, Colorado, police gave a warning to residents after sharpened wooden stakes were found buried in the wood chips of a playground at Mitchell Park.

So far we know of no children being injured by these malicious acts, and we certainly don’t want parents shying away from parks because of it.  But it should serve as a reminder of why it’s probably best to have kids keep their shoes on while playing, and to stay vigilant about giving your child’s play spaces a quick look over while they are running around.  Not just for sick pranks like this,  but for the normal everyday hazards.

– Read more about playground safety