Gig positions are exploding in Sacramento and throughout California.
People are using these side-hustles to set their own hours or earn extra cash. Unfortunately, the opportunity may come with consequences, especially on our roads.
Parents' examples lead the way with distracted driving
If you're a parent of a teenager, you know how hard it can be to get them to put down the cellphone. They're on it all the time, taking pictures, texting friends and going on social media.
At the same time, you know that it's a serious concern on the road. Per the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, teenage drivers are the greatest risk when it comes to distracted driving. Other age groups also do it, but not as much.
Why do workers and others get hurt on elevators and escalators?
A study originally published by The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) originally in 2006, then later updated in April of 2018, captures just how often injuries or death results from escalator and elevator rides in the United States.
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) data shows that some 17,000 individuals annually are injured while riding on an elevator or escalator. An additional 30 are killed. Of those who are injured, 60 percent happened on elevators. In addition, all but 10 percent of the deaths happen on elevators.
Treating burn injuries can quickly become costly
When asked to think about burn injuries, many people tend to think that the most serious ones result from an individual trying to escape a burning building. Most don't realize that electromagnetic, thermal, chemical and electrical energy can all cause someone to suffer severe injuries as well.
There are three types of burns; first, second and third-degree ones. The two latter ones are the most serious.
A North Highlands crash kills 1 pedestrian, injures another
Two pedestrians, one female and one male, were struck by a motorist in the North Highlands neighborhood of Sacramento on the evening of Jan. 9. A spokesperson with the California Highway Patrol (CHP) reported that the incident happened shortly before 9:30 p.m. near the intersection of Date Avenue and Madison Avenue.
Witnesses reported seeing the two pedestrians walking southbound toward the intersection in the moments before the crash. At that same time, two vehicles, a Hyundai Elantra and Toyota Prius were also fast approaching it.
Ruling says athletes may sue for concussion-related injuries
If you are a high school or college athlete, or are a parent of one, a new opinion that just came from the Ninth Circuit may be of interest to you since it asks for more protection of athletes from devastating head injuries.
In this particular ruling, a federal appeals court said that the governing body for the USA Water Polo organization is able to be sued for not protecting an athlete who was allowed to continue to play after receiving a concussion.
Helpful tips for making a car insurance claim
If you are part of a car accident, it won't be long before you wonder about the best way to contact your insurance company.
While your health should always come first, you want to make contact with your agent as soon as possible.
Out-of-hand grease fires often maim, kill victims
National Fire Protection Association data shows that Thanksgiving Day followed by Christmas Eve and Christmas Day are when the largest number of kitchen home fires occur. While you would expect electrical equipment, wood, paper or trash to cause these blazes, they're not the top reasons that fires occur. Instead, house fires often get started because of grease in a pan on a stove.
Although many of us who have watched Sacramento firefighters have been conditioned to believe that water is the best way to put out a blaze, it's not what you want to use to put out any type of fire, such as a grease one. The reason that you shouldn't do this is because any time that you add water to a hot pan with oil in it, it has the potential of causing a fire to escape from it. If this occurs, then the flames may overcome you.
How many people are treated for traumatic brain injuries yearly?
According to the American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS), there are an estimated 235,000 individuals who are admitted to the hospital suffering from a traumatic brain injury (TBI) on an annual basis. This number is 20 times the number of patients who are treated for spinal cord injuries. These admissions result in what's estimated to be $48-$56 billion in yearly costs. The statistics regarding who suffers TBIs are staggering.
Of the 235,000 annual TBI hospitalizations that occur in the United States, 37,000 of those patients are children 14-years-old or younger. Another 435,000 kids who are suspected of having a brain injury are evaluated in hospital emergency rooms.
An alleged drunk Stockton commissioner hits, kills a pedestrian
The 77-year-old former Stockton vice mayor and current commissioner with the Port of Stockton was taken into police custody on the evening of Nov. 28 for his role in causing the death of an 82-year-old pedestrian.
A spokesperson with the Stockton Police Department said that dispatchers first started receiving calls summoning officers to the scene of a crash involving a pedestrian and a vehicle shortly before 8 p.m. that evening. When the officers arrived at the intersection of Fontana Avenue and Country Club Boulevard, they found the victim laying there in the middle of the road.
