Local children shunning helmets, risking lives

CHILDREN in Bellambi and Corrimal are breaking the law " not to mention risking serious injury or even death - by continuing to ride their bikes without helmets.

In one half hour period at the end of a school day, numerous children were observed by the Wollongong and Northern Leader riding home on bikes without helmets.

Other young cyclists wore unfastened or ill-fitting helmets, while some simply hung their protective headwear from their bicycle handlebars.

The children observed were from both local primary and high schools, easily identified by their uniforms.

As the children rode from their school grounds the usual rush of students and parents in cars competing for parking or simply pulling over to pick up children from kerbsides, created a chaotic atmosphere.

One concerned Bellambi resident, himself a father of two, said he often observed children riding in his street without the appropriate headwear.

"It is very common " they ride around our street and never wear helmets " at any one time there could be 10 without helmets in our street alone," he said.

"All it would take would be one small accident and they could get seriously hurt.

"The message about how important it is just doesn't seem to be getting through."

A spokesperson for Ambulance NSW said it was vital that young people understood the importance of helmets as a safety device.

"It's illegal not to wear one and those rules are obviously there for a reason," the spokesperson said.

"Parents should be enforcing the need for their children to wear helmets because there is a big risk of head injury if they are in an accident and they could be left permanently disabled or even killed.

"The Ambulance service responds to numerous bicycle accidents where children have not been wearing a helmet as required."