Offaly hospital consultant warns of dangers of e-scooters as reports of serious injuries increase

A CONSULTANT at Tullamore Hospital has said reports of serious injuries involving electronic scooters are becoming more and more frequent.

Professor Eoin Sheehan, orthopaedic consultant, Midlands Regional Hospital, joined with Deputy Garda Commissioner Anne Marie McMahon in issuing a warning about e-scooters, especially in the run-up to the Christmas gifting season.

Speaking in support of a new 'Be Safe, Be Seen' campaign spearheaded by Tullamore Rotary Club and launched in Ballinagar, Professor Sheehan said: “Mechanised vehicles such as e-scooters have a weapon-like impact on the human body such is the force and impact involved. The lack of high-visibility clothing and helmets along with the speed of e-scooters is causing catastrophic injuries. Only this week, new research in the UK has shown e-scooter accidents have tripled between 2020 and 2021”.

Expanding on the dangers in an interview with RTE's This Week, Professor Sheehan said a variety of injuries are being sustained by scooter users.

“The vast majority of them are upper limb injuries and head injuries, facial injuries. That's what we're noticing around the country, certainly in Tullamore and my colleagues in Dublin in the Mater and Connolly have reported on it as well, as have all the international cities in the United States and in Europe.

“You're largely much more exposed on a micro scooter and an electronic scooter than you are on a push bike. Bicycles tend to be a little bit bigger than scooters... they have larger wheels so they can probably cope with obstacles, slippery roads, potholes etc which as you well know we have plenty of.

“Bicycles are probably a little bit easier to control and people are used to them than the scooters.”

Those involved in scooter accidents can suffer “spinal injuries and potentially life threatening injuries” and international studies have shown that more of the injuries are occurring at night and to younger people.

“A third of them aren't wearing helmets,” said Professor Sheehan. “Visibility is a big issue, a lot of people are wearing black clothing when they're out on these at night.”

Injuries are also being caused to people who are struck by e-scooters and because they are powered electronically, it is harder to hear them.

“You're not expecting to be knocked down by a vehicle when you're a pedestrian on a footpath,” the Tullamore consultant added.

He also advised scooter users to wear helmets: “I think they should... cyclists wear helmets and as a wise colleague of mine keeps saying, helmets are the difference between a headache and a ventilator.”

With Christmas approaching and children wanting “new gizmos” he urged parents to use commonsense and educate the youngsters.

“This is actually a vehicle, a self propelled vehicle and it can attain high speeds, so just educating your child [is important], wear a helmet, and the high visibility is vitally important. If you're not seen at all, you're in big trouble.”

Deputy Garda Commissioner McMahon said: “Gardaí have seen increased usage of e-scooters, especially in towns and urban areas. Members of An Garda Síochána have attended collisions involving e-scooters where serious injuries have been sustained. Regrettably there has been one fatality and 24 serious injury collisions involving e-scooters to date in 2022”.

The Deputy Garda Commissioner added: “Given the speed and impact of these vehicles, they are not a suitable mode of transport for young teenagers or children. I would also like to remind anyone considering buying an e-scooter that it is an offence to supply a mechanically propelled vehicle to a person under 16 years of age for use in a public place.”

In addition, Deputy Garda Commissioner McMahon said she wanted to highlight the importance of wearing high visibility clothing when out walking, cycling or motorcycling. “So far in 2022, 25 pedestrians have been killed on our roads, the vast majority of whom were not wearing high visibility clothing or carrying a light. My message today is that all road users should be mindful of their own safety and the safety of others on the roads this winter period.”

Rosemount woman Rachel Duffy, the reigning Rose of Tralee, was at St Joseph's National School, Ballinagar to support the campaign.

“As the current International Rose of Tralee I am delighted to support the Be Safe, Be Seen campaign. To highlight the importance of all aspects of road safety is so essential and significant. With so many thousands of schoolchildren travelling to and from our schools, it is important to educate children and by extension their parents/guardians as to the continuous message of all aspects of road safety.”

Paddy Dunican Tullamore and District Rotary Club, said the Be Safe, Be Seen campaign aims to raise awareness of all aspects of road safety, including the 40,000 schoolchildren in the Midland counties of Offaly, Laois and Westmeath.

Also attending the launch in Ballinagar last Friday were the emergency services including the air ambulance, national emergency ambulances, Tullamore fire brigade incident and rescue units and Garda response units.