Car seat safety is important to parents. We spend a lot of time choosing the best car seats for our children, worry about when to turn them around, if the seat could survive an accident, etc.
In an effort to give parents more peace of mind, car seat accessories like mirrors and cameras have become more popular, giving parents the ability to keep an eye on their kids as they drive. But one mom discovered that the mirror she used to keep an eye on her son almost put him in danger.
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The incident was totally random
Emily Perna, a mom of two who lives in West Virginia, shared her experience in a Facebook post in June.
"I was unloading Luca out of his car seat today for Bible Study and I noticed that the sun reflected off of his infant car mirror and his car seat started smoking. I can't express how fast it happened and how fast I moved to get him out. I was shocked and I have never heard of these mirrors doing this before so PLEASE be aware that they can do this! I thank God that he is alright," she wrote, sharing pictures of the lightly burned car seat.
She couldn't believe what she was seeing
"It was like when light comes through a window in your house and you can see dust in the air," Perna told TODAY.com. "I actually can't believe I noticed it, that's how faint it was at the start." But then she quickly realized that what she was seeing wasn't dust.
"Then it looked like steam," she explained. "Very quickly it was getting thicker." She immediately removed Luca from the car seat.
She's lucky that she was thinking on her feet
While still holding Luca, Perna took the mirror out of the car. She told Today that thankfully there "was never a flame," but if it had been a different day, the incident could have played out differently. That day, she happened to be with her mother, who was getting her daughter out of the car at the same time.
"Normally I’d be getting the two kids out of the car alone and it would have taken much longer to get to Luca," she shared. Further reflecting on the moment, she admitted, "I really think he would have been burned" if she hadn't moved faster.
You don't need a mirror next to your child's car seat
"I think this is an extremely rare situation," child safety expert Jen Saxton told Today. She told the outlet that it was the first time she had heard of such a thing happening in her career.
Saxton shared that she understands the appeal of mirrors and even appreciates the convenience of them. But she did share a reminder, saying, "They are for convenience only. Many people don't have them."
