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<br />ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS <br />National Safe Kids Week 2008 <br />April 26 -May 4; 2008 <br />WHEREAS, unintentional injury is the number one killer of children ages 1 - 14 <br />years in the U.S.; and <br />WHEREAS, each year, more than 5,000 children 14 and under die from <br />unintentional injuries; and <br />WHEREAS, for children ages 14 and under, the leading causes of unintentional <br />injury deaths are motor vehicle-related injuries, drowning, residential fires or burn <br />injury, suffocation and pedestrian injury; and <br />WHEREAS, 90 percent of these injuries and deaths are preventable; and <br />WHEREAS, reducing the barriers to attaining safety devices (such as smoke <br />alarms, bicycle helmets, car seats and booster seats), increasing educational <br />efforts directed toward children who are at high risk for injury, and improving the <br />overall safety of the child's environment are preventative strategies to keeping <br />kids safe from unintentional injuries; and <br />WHEREAS, Safe Kids USA and Orange County Safe Communities promote <br />childhood injury prevention strategies by uniting diverse groups into local and <br />state coalitions, developing innovative educational tools and programs, initiating <br />public policy changes, distributing safety devices to families in need, promoting <br />new technology and raising awareness through the media; and <br />WHEREAS, Safe Kids USA, with the support of founding sponsor, Johnson & <br />Johnson, launches Safe Kids Week 2008 "Gear Up for Safety," which focuses on <br />celebrating 20 years of creating a safer world for kids and promoting. efforts to <br />make further progress to protect children from accidental injuries. <br />NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that we, the Orange County Board of <br />Commissioners, do hereby proclaim the week of April 26 -May 4, 2008 as Safe <br />Kids Week in Orange County and encourage and call upon all the residents of <br />this County to support the efforts and activities of Orange County Safe <br />Communities to prevent childhood injury. <br />This, the 15t" day of April 2008. <br />Barry Jacobs, Chair <br />Orange County Board of Commissioners <br />