Garage Safety
Automatic Garage Doors are involved in many injuries that are serious enough to require medical attention. Many of those injured are children.
You can prevent Garage Door injuries by:
Never standing or walking under a moving Garage Door, or trying to "beat" a closing door.
Supervising children around Garage Doors, and keeping door switches and controls out of their reach.
Equiping your door with a sensing device, which will reverse a descending door if something gets in it's path.
Important Safety Information
Since 1990, an average of 20,000 people each year have been treated in hospital emergency rooms for injuries related to garage doors.
Source: U.S. Consumer Products Safety Commission.
From 1998 - 1995, an estimated 68,380 finger injuries associated with garage doors were treated in hospital emergency rooms; and average of 8,550 finger injuries per year.
Source: U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission
In addition to the finger injuries listed above, 62 incidents are attributed to the sudden release of energy stored in counterbalance springs on sectional doors resulted in serious injury.
1996, the estimated 8,530 finger injuries associated with garage doors included 190 amputations, 1,000 crushing injuries and 1,400 fractures. Also in 1996, an estimated 1,150 injuries were associated with garage door springs. The CPSC is aware of one death involving garage door springs.
Source: U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission
Children accounted for approximately 15 percent of the total 22,431 garage door related injuries reported from January 1982 to December 1985.
Source: U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission
Sixty children under the age of 14 have been trapped and killed under automatic garage doors since March 1982.
Source: U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission
Eighty-five children suffered serious injury or death due to garage door openers from 1974 through 1995.
Source: PEDIATRICS, a magazine by the American Academy of Pediatrics
There have been 1,959 persons, age 15 and older, injured in automatic garage door related incidents.
Source: U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission
Of all garage door related injuries reported by hospitals in Canada, 59 percent were caught or cut fingers or hands; 23.5 percent involved a garage door coming down on a person.
Source: Database of the Canadian Hospitals Injury Reporting and Prevention
Program (CHIRPP), Health Canada, from 15 hospitals across Canada.
Canadian hospitals participating in an injury reporting program recorded the highest number (77.6 percent) of garage door injuries occurred at a person's own home, during the summer months of June through August (37.7 percent).
Source: Database of the Canadian Hospitals Injury Reporting and Prevention
Program (CHIRPP), Health Canada, from 15 hospitals across Canada.
Despite warning tags and labels, accidents can occur. But there are solutions. With a safely designed garage door and garage door opener, detailed instruction to family members, warning labels in key locations, and regular maintenance, the risk of injury from garage doors and openers can be dramatically reduced.
Extension and torsion springs, along with attached hardware, are under extreme tension at all times. All tension must be released from springs before any work is performed on the springs, door sections, or hardware. Only a professionally trained service person should relieve the springs of any tension.
As with any door, caution must be used when closing it. Do not attempt to manually close a garage door by placing fingers between the sections as a place to grab onto the door. Serious injury could result! Use the step plate/lift handle or pull rope attached to the door to pull the door closed.
Garage door opener, wall control panel, and remote controls: Your garage door opener is a great convenience, but can cause injury if used improperly. Never let anyone "race to beat the door" as it closes. Keep the wall control panel at least five feet above the ground and the remote controls away from children. Instruct children never to play underneath the area where the garage door closes. Always keep the door in full view as it operates and do not leave the area until the door completely opens or closes.