University of Delaware
Office of Public Relations
UpDate - Vol. 16, No. 34, June 12
                                   
                             Safety Corner
                                   
        Plastic truck bed liners can pose a fire safety hazard
     
     Recently, as a motorist filled a small gas can that was
inside the bed of his pickup truck, the gas spontaneously
ignited, burning him.
     An investigation determined that the fire was caused by
static-electricity buildup from the plastic bed liner.
     This was not an isolated incident. Technical bulletins
and warnings addressing the problem have been issued
recently by Ford Motor Co., Standard Oil Co. and Chevron
USA.
     A Chevron marketing bulletin stated that the insulating
effect of the plastic liners prevents the grounding of the
static charge generated by gasoline flowing into a metal
can.  As the charge builds, it can create a static spark
between the can and the gas nozzle.
     The reports issued by the three companies, as well as
those published by others, all recommend that a gas can
should never be filled in the bed of a truck equipped with a
bed liner. The gas container should be placed on the ground
before it is filled.
                                   
                     June is National Safety Month
     
     June is National Safety Month. To commemorate this
month's emphasis on a safe home and workplace, here are some
"Facts and Stats," taken from the National Safety Council
safety kit promoting National Safety Month.
* There were 3.6 million disabling workplace injuries in
 1995.
* Motor vehicle crashes account for 20.3 percent of
 workplace related fatalities.
* Workplace injuries cost society $119.4 billion in 1995.
* Injuries to the back are the most common workplace injury.
* Nearly half of all fatal occupational injuries in 1994
 involved workers between 25 and 44 years old.
First Aid and Community Safety Awareness Week began June 8
 and continues through June 14.
* Every year, one out of four persons sustains injuries
 serious enough to require medical attention.
* Injuries are the leading cause of death in children.
* Expectant parents should include first aid and CPR
 training when preparing for parenthood.
* Most sudden illnesses and injuries require no more medical
 attention than proper first aid care.
Home Safety Week will be marked from June 15-21.
* In 1995, 26,400 people were killed by unintentional home
 injuries and 7.3 million people suffered an unintentional
 home injury.
* One person in 36 in the United States was disabled one
 full day or more by unintentional injuries received in the
 home.
* Disabling injuries are more numerous in the home than in
 the workplace and in motor vehicle crashes combined.
* The leading causes of home deaths as the result of injury
 are poisonings and falls.
* Cooking equipment is the leading cause of home fires and
 fire injuries.

Driving Safety Week is scheduled from June 22-28.
* Motor vehicle crashes caused 43,900 deaths in 1995.
* The safest place for children under age 12 is properly
 restrained in the back seat, especially in a vehicle with
 air bags.
* Wearing your lap/shoulder safety belt reduces your risk of
 fatal injury by 45 percent.
* For fatal motor vehicle crashes, males have higher
 involvement rates than females.
* In 1995, 41 percent of traffic fatalities involved
 alcohol.