Some might call it a miracle, but the fact that two children in the back seat of this car survived — with only minor injuries, no less — is more than luck: it's responsible car seat safety [1] at work.
A multivehicle accident in Wakulla County, FL, in 2015 left a car completely pummeled and nearly smashed flat. At first glance, the damage is so severe that it's hard to imagine anyone in that car — particularly in the back seats, which received the brunt of the impact — survived. Thankfully, the driver, an unnamed mother, had taken the time to properly secure her two children into backseat car seats [2], and, according to the Wakulla County Fire Rescue Facebook page [3], which covered the accident, all three family members walked away with only minor injuries.
The images of the aftermath are shocking, but it's worth looking closely — they are an important reminder of the life-saving power of proper child restraint in motor vehicles.
The base of the seat was cracked.
The damage to this car seat prevented harm to the occupant.
The top of one car seat is barely visible post-impact.
This is where the two car seats ended up after the collision.
The back seat, after the car seats had been removed.
Rescue workers provide care for the driver of the vehicle, the mother, who suffered apparent minor injuries.
