posted on February 4, 2004 01:38:17 PM new
This is not related but I just wanted to warn anyone I can.
On Saturday a Large Candy machine fell on my 6 year old girl and broke both bones in her arm, had it landed on her head or my 2 year old who was standing beside he it may have been alot worst!
We were at a ski resort in the lodge.
It took two people to lift it off of her.
She now has a full arm cast.
These things should be secured but the people that install them dont use the saftey strap provided in most cases...so beware!
It was like the model bs300 listed on the website...notice the saftey warning lower down the page.
posted on February 4, 2004 01:56:10 PM new
That's just terrible. How on earth did it fall on her? Were they pulling on it or did it just tip over? Poor little thing.
Do I detect a lawsuit coming...???
We wonder how any of us survived being a kid. I got into so much trouble as a child and took so many risks that I probably shouldn't even be here, but nobody ever heard about lawsuits then. Accidents just happened and we were just warned to be more careful. If you fell or got hurt on someone elses property, they just said "sorry" and that was that.
Anyway, hope she's on the mend and everything turns out okay.
posted on February 4, 2004 01:57:31 PM new
she reached up to the top machine and pulled it down on her. She was at the side of it. It had a rectagular base with the long side front to back...would have been hard for it to fall forward, but very easy to fall sideways. I dont think it can fall on its own. I 6 year old should not be able to pull one of these over.
posted on February 4, 2004 02:54:13 PM new
That's awful that that happened to your 6 year old. Whoever was supposed to be watching her ought to be ashamed.
posted on February 4, 2004 02:55:17 PM new
Wow, sorry to hear about that. How terrible. My mother once had a shelf of paneling fall on her at Home Depot. Some nitwit stocker didn't secure the pile. That was over 10 years ago. She still has back and neck trouble, sometimes severe. Unfortunately, she settled so there is nothing she can do about it now.
posted on February 4, 2004 03:08:11 PM new
iareateacher your comment of "Whoever was supposed to be watching her ought to be ashamed" is TOTALLY uncalled for. Obviously you don't have any children.
posted on February 4, 2004 03:10:34 PM new
::Whoever was supposed to be watching her ought to be ashamed.::
What dumbassed comment. Yes mom and dad - you too should have your 6 year olds on a retracting leash at all times in order to pull them away from killer gumball machines on the loose.
~~~ • ~~~ • ~~~ • ~~~ • ~~~
If it's really "common" sense, why do so few people actually have it?
posted on February 4, 2004 03:13:45 PM new
Sounds like a Foxworthy routine. I feel sorry for the little girl, but, what about personal responsibility? Not the little girl, but the adult providing supervision? I did not look at the machine in question, perhaps it is poorly designed. At least it sounds like it. Watch these machines, but, also, watch your curtain-climbers! Don't throw them into chandeliers either, just saying.
I remember the outrage from my children when I refused to let them enjoy certain rides at the fair. I don't think it is safe, I am responsible, end of subject; or we can go home. Boy, was I the biggest square, ever! The next season a teen lost her foot on one of the rides I nixed. It astonished me that the kids picked up on that and tell the story.
posted on February 4, 2004 03:27:25 PM new
I used to have a three machine gumball set up and that stuipid thing tipped all the time. They are extremely top heavy even when empty - if you are dealing with a machine that is then unbalanced (say lots of purchases on one side that adds heavy coins not yet emptied, it doesn't take much to tip them. I finally just took it apart and kept one that I use now as a change jar.
~~~ • ~~~ • ~~~ • ~~~ • ~~~
If it's really "common" sense, why do so few people actually have it?
posted on February 4, 2004 05:33:12 PM new
Sorry to hear of the child being injured, but I have yet to ever see a gumball machine fall over on its own accord.
It's time for parents to accept responsibility for their children's actions and stop blaming accidents on others.
"If you believe you can tell me what to think, I believe I can tell you where to go. Not all of us are sheep....."
posted on February 4, 2004 05:44:34 PM new
lowprofile said:
These things should be secured but the people that install them dont use the saftey strap provided in most cases...so beware!
fenix has experience with these and states that they are top heavy.
None of us were there so how can we judge what kind of parent lowprofile is? I am assuming he is a good parent because he came here to warn others of the danger.
Some of the comments here are uncalled for because no one was there to witness it. Kids can move fast and things can happen just as fast.
posted on February 4, 2004 05:47:20 PM new
lowprofile: How awful. I hope your little girl is doing well.
THANK YOU for the warning.
How many moms, dads, grannies, grandpas, uncles and aunts have given some change and watched the kiddies scamper off to the gumball machines?? I have!! I never dreamed to think they would fall over.
Yes, I am usually standing nearby to assist if the handle is hard to turn, jams or the child just can't manage to get the coin in the slot. The machines have to be physically manipulated to work. Some of them are multi-tiered and too high. I don't recall looking to see if any of them are bolted to the wall or otherwise secured.
Thanks again for the warning. I will be more vigilant when my kiddies want to use the gumball machines.
posted on February 4, 2004 05:50:37 PM new
lowprofile your link doesn't work.
however, I took the time go to over there and search for the machine and you're right...it's a VERY bad design and SHOULD of been restrained.
pay no attention to these people? that want to blame the adults for the accident. these are the same people that if it happened to THEM, they would be the first ones in line with their hands out for $$ over a lawsuit.
you said nothing like that. you were thought you had friends over here and you do.
having been a parent myself and knowing that it is impossible to watch a child 24-7 and keep them from any harm whatsoever..well, it's impossible. you should feel no guilt.
who would ever think of a gumball machine could be dangerous like that? except, maybe the manufacturer, because it is well noted in their website that they also sell the "safety belts". a candy machine is designed specifically to entice a child's attention.
posted on February 4, 2004 06:02:27 PM new
lowprofile, I am so sorry that happened to your child!
Children are drawn to bubblegum and candy machines - the manufacturers are well aware of that and rely on that! I have a 6-year-old that I give change to also (and these days its quarters! LOL). As much as the machines are designed to appeal to this age group, they sure aren't very easy to operate - I, too, stand there to help turn the knob, etc.
teacher -
"I hate to see a child injured through adult neglect."
I honestly didn't think you could top the first assenine comment you made, but you did. What a horrible, horrible thing to say. Hopefully you will never have to go through seeing your child injured like lowprofile has.
__________________________________
"I have neither the time nor the inclination to explain myself to the people who sleep under the very blanket of freedom I provide, and then question the manner in which I provide it. I'd rather you just said 'thank you' and went on your way." - A Few Good Men
[ edited by wgm on Feb 4, 2004 06:03 PM ]
Those machines need to be redesigned as they can be top heavy. The ones I never trust are those large soda machines.
All they have is a small sign on them warning you not to shake them as they can fall on you and kill or maim you.
I have always thought that they should be bolted to the sidewalk or wall.
posted on February 4, 2004 06:24:45 PM new
Hi all,
Lowprofile, I'm so sorry your daughter was hurt. Hopefully she'll heal quickly and be none the worse for wear.
Please don't blame yourself.
A little anecdote here, just to show how easy it is for a kid to get hurt even when there are adults nearby and in charge.
When my oldest son was maybe 2 1/2, we were camping at Calico, a ghost town in California. There were four adults, all of us watching him. Well, it only took him a couple of minutes to wander off and end up on a bluff that was about 30 feet high. I spotted him in time to call to him "Don't move, Bobby! Just don't move!!" Obedient little child that he was, he didn't, just sat down. Of course he slid on his fanny all the way down the bluff, where I caught him by one arm. Thankfully he wasn't injured.
To this day, he remembers what he said to me when we were back in the camper. That it was like a bear growling! He also remembers what I was wearing and the color of the washcloth I used to wipe his face. Oh, he's 37.
I'm glad you posted your experience. Hopefully others will be more watchful of the dangers inherent in these top-heavy machines.
posted on February 4, 2004 06:49:48 PM new
ok you lazy people. here's what lowprofile is talking about (I think I got the right pics, it said bs300)
immently tippable which is why the supplier notes right under this that it is to be secured with a saftey belt which secures it to the wall if it can't be bolted to the floor.
the only blame that should be placed here is to the business (who might not of wanted their walls or floor marred or to the company that manufactured the danged things...NOT lowprofile!
Now apologize to lowprofile or I'll send you off to class with SalGal!
posted on February 5, 2004 10:47:45 AM new
yea yea yea, SALGAL would boot me from class. Make this a positive experience for your daughter, so's she can laugh about it when she is 37.
I put a leash on my youngest (2-3 years old) to keep her from bolting from our sides. As she got older we would let her hold her own 'puppy dog'. She would stand there and hold her own leash. If anyone commented about the harness and leash my statement was usually, "HONEY, we have a volunteer to watch the baaaaaaby!" Lol, I saw some really quick fade aways. It was her older sister that I, ahhhh, exuberantly tossed into the chandelier. They should design chandeliers to be more child friendly, too.
Don't take the talk here to heart, lowprofile. Anyone with children has had an aww chit moment. Thank you for providing the circumstances of the accident. I am hear to tell you they can get into crap while being WATCHED at the end of a short leash. This was the child that could get away with petting a rabid dog.......
posted on February 5, 2004 11:54:27 AM new"I can post my two cents if I feel like it."
and that's exactly what your post is worth.
This thread doesn't have to be DIRECTLY related to eBay. Indirectly it is because there are many, many posters here that have small children.
__________________________________
"I have neither the time nor the inclination to explain myself to the people who sleep under the very blanket of freedom I provide, and then question the manner in which I provide it. I'd rather you just said 'thank you' and went on your way." - A Few Good Men
posted on February 5, 2004 12:42:13 PM new
I'm so sorry this happened to your little girl
As a mother of two active girls (now grown) and a grandmother of a very active 10 year old boy, I can tell those who say "parent supervision would prevent accidents" obviously didn't have that pleasure
You can't watch them every minute and millions of child safety laws are made just to keep the kids safe. If it was up to "parent supervision" we wouldn't have child proof caps, toys that have to be choke proof, etc. The lodge was negligent in having an item that attracts only youngsters not anchored down to make it safe!
posted on February 5, 2004 12:44:14 PM new
Can't say I'm really surprised at the reaction, for a number of reasons.
I'll leave you with two parting thoughts.
1) If a babysitter, nanny, daycare worker or (yes) teacher been in charge of looking after your unfortunate little one, said babysitter, nanny, daycare worker or teacher would be looking for a new job right now. Or getting reprimanded. I wonder if you all would accept "But I couldn't watch her every second, could I?" as an mitigating excuse from a third-party caregiver. Or would you be dialing your lawyer?
2) Only in America do adults get a free pass for the most outrageous "accidents" happening to the helpless ones in their care. It's February now. In a couple of months it'll be Little Sizzler season, the moniker a few of us jaded types have given to the yearly phenomenon of parents and relatives "forgetting" their infants in broiling-hot cars.
The first couple of these incidents that made the national airwaves were horrible, deplorable and in all likelihood, truly accidents. But there have just been too many. Most sane people I know believe that some of them were infanticide. Authorities refuse to prosecute most cases, saying "The parents have suffered enough."
Well, no, they haven't suffered enough until they've been strapped into an oven at 150 degrees for five or six hours. Maybe then. Maybe.
I lied, I actually have three parting thoughts.
3) Your little daughter will, later in life, be able to tell when the weather is about to change. I sure know the signs, because my collarbone twinges where it was broken when I was four. Fell down a flight of stairs, if anyone cares. Mom? Next door. Another neighbor heard me screaming. At least that's what they tell me, I don't remember anything after standing at the top of the stairs.
And that's what I wish for your sweet daughter...that the marvelously recuperative powers of the human brain blank out most of this experience for her so she doesn't remember the pain and fear.
[ edited by iareateacher on Feb 5, 2004 12:45 PM ]
posted on February 5, 2004 12:59:29 PM new
Sorry to hear your child was injured.
Not to chastise you as a parent, because this isn't what its about. It seems as though several people think this is the parents responsibility, however, there are possibly four at fault parties here.
One- The manufacturer of the gumball machine. Even though they give warnings, they should assume that installation may not be appropriate and should only have an authorized agent install these to make sure they are done correctly.
Two- The agent. Many of these gumball machines are run by independent individuals who pay thousands of dollars to place these machines in stores, etc. They manage and maintain the machines. If they were responsible for the installation, then they are partially at fault.
Three- The store. It is the responsibility of the store to make sure that their patrons are safe at all times. The store goes out of their way to make sure their lighting fixtures are secured to the ceilings, and as such should make sure things are attached to the floor or wall properly.
Four- The parent. It is up to the parent to supervise the child at all times. I hate to say it, but yes, they are partially at fault as well. Just because they were getting change and the child was in site doesn't make it an excuse. This doesn't by any means make the parent a bad parent. In fact, the best parenting is done by allowing children to explore, run, play, fall down, and get hurt every now and then. Otherwise the child leads a protected and sheltered life. It happens. Fortunately, the child didn't experience a life ending injury.
If you go to court, keep in mind that the attorney has to weigh where the fault lies. Meaning that they will have to figure out which is most at fault. Some states will not award anything if the fault is less than 50% against the defendant.
[ edited by rustygumbo on Feb 5, 2004 01:02 PM ]
