Playground Alert!!

As a grandparent with or without custody of my grandchildren, I would be remiss if I didn't pass this information on about playground equipment. Now understand, I lived in the Phoenix desert for over 20 years and was a very protective parent when it came to my kids, but even I didn't know about the wood bark chips in playgrounds and I never knew that the new rubberized playing surface get as hot as a cup of coffee. Ouch! I am the worst at going barefoot in the summer and yes, even in Arizona I would run out and say the ground was burning, but never did my feet look like the little boy in this video and they don't live where it is hot, hot!


What about the bark chips? So many schools, playgrounds and even homes have these in their yards and they are known to go up in flames by spontaneously combustion. Now, I know about that, I worked as a police/fire dispatcher and was even out on a cotton bale fire one day with the fire department and the cause of that fire was spontaneous combustion. Other things that I know do this are hay and straw and piles of manure, they are like one giant compost pile that never gets turned so it heats up and poof!

So follow this link to playground dangers: http://cosmos.bcst.yahoo.com/up/player/popup/index.php?cl=8962722
and if it doesn't work, I have it linked on the side bar, or you can pick it up on Yahoo news under Playground dangers.

This is not an urban legend, this is the real thing and I saw the reporter and the fireman test the surfaces of children's playground equipment, all parents, grandparents, friends, family, daycare providers, babysitters, teachers and anyone else that deals with children should be very aware of these dangers.