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Road Rules
Road rules: Disabling the airbag?
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Question: I have been concerned about this for years: I am just 5 feet tall and weigh 110 pounds. When driving I need the seat moved forward quite a bit to reach the pedals. Can I, or should I, disconnect the airbag? But then my husband, on the rare times he uses my car, would be at risk. Waiting for your wise advice. Thank you.
Answer: You’ve probably seen the letters “SRS” embossed on the steering wheel and in front of the passenger seat on the dashboard. In a round-about way, those three letters explain why you probably don’t need to be concerned about injury from your airbag. Is it possible to get injured from an airbag? Yes, but probably not because you’re short.
The airbag was invented in 1919 by a couple of dentists who were trying to prevent jaw fractures. They both served at a hospital during World War I treating war victims with severe jaw injuries. Realizing that many of these injuries were caused by vehicle crashes (both planes and road-traveling vehicles), they sought a solution to preventing the injuries.
Given the technology limitations of 1919, the dentists’ airbag design was nothing like what we have now. Airbag innovation progressed in the 1950s, ’60s and early ’70s, Ford and General Motors deployed them on a limited basis. By the late ’70s both had abandoned the idea, thinking it wasn’t viable. Turns out they were wrong. In the mid ’80s, airbags made a return in a few cars ed the trapping efforts, Simpson said. In a normal year, large teams of volunteers could cover more territory but now only three to four scientists are trapping the crab at a time.
The pandemic also cut near ly two months of trapping from the schedule, which normally goes from April until October, but didn’t start until the last week of May this year. Simpson said it will take another year to see if not trapping in the spring affected population numbers.
The Salish Sea is already sub ject to additional strains, including development, pollution, extreme temperatures and chem istry changes, Grason said.
“When we pile on stressors one after another, it becomes hard er to tell the impact of any one stressor like a single invasive species,” she said. “But when you subject ecosystems that are already struggling to further in sult, you’re working against your other restoration efforts.” and by 1998 they were mandatory in all cars.
Back to those three letters: “SRS” stands for Supplemental Restraint System. As you might guess from the name, airbags are not intended to be your primary safety device in a crash; that’s your seatbelt. It’s true that airbags have caused some fatalities. However, over 80 percent of those deaths involved a vehicle occupant who was unbelted or improperly belted. (Ninety percent of those fatalities occurred in vehicles manufactured before 1998. That’s when federal rules reduced the power in airbags).
Airbags are designed to work in harmony with a seatbelt to reduce injuries that your seatbelt can’t prevent, not as a standalone safety feature. Most airbag injuries and fatalities that involve a driver too close to the airbag come not from sitting too close, but from not wearing a seatbelt and then moving too close during the crash.
If you always wear your seatbelt, the risk from your airbag is minuscule compared to the advantages it offers in a crash. In fact, airbags save thousands of lives every year and reduce serious injuries that seatbelts alone can’t prevent. However, the law does allow for a few scenarios where you would be allowed to disable an airbag, and one is related to your seating position.
There is such a thing as too close, and it might be closer than you were expecting. The first 2 to 3 inches of airbag deployment are the “risk zone.” Beyond that, risk of injury diminishes rapidly. The recommended minimum distance between the steering wheel and the driver in an airbag-equipped car is 10 inches. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) figures that in most vehicles a driver who is 4'6" or taller should be able to position the driver’s seat to get 10 inches between their chest and the steering wheel.
The other driver exception is a medical condition that “makes the potential harm from the driver air bag … greater than … allowing the driver, even if belted, to hit the steering wheel, dashboard, or windshield in a crash.” I don’t know what medical condition fits those parameters, but it’s an option for anyone whose doctor thinks they need it.
On the passenger side, an airbag can be disabled if transporting an infant or child and the back seat isn’t an option (usually because there is no back seat, like in a pickup or two-seater sports car).
The back seat, if there is one, is always the safer place for kids to ride, but putting an infant in a rear-facing car seat in the front seat of an airbag equipped car is extra-disastrous in a crash.
To legally disable an airbag, you need to submit a written request to NHTSA and, if approved, the work has to be done by an authorized dealer or shop. They’ll install an on-off switch so that the airbag can be enabled whenever the vehicle occupant doesn’t meet the requirements for deactivation.
Doug Dahl is a manager with the Washington Traffic Safety Commission, Region 11 and pub
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OBITUARIES
James V. “Butch” Hinchey October 7, 1946–September 2, 2020
Butch was born October 7, 1946 in Richlands, VA to Virgil & Gladys (Edwards) Hinchey. Butch and his mother flew to Washington State when he was 6 months old to reunite with his father who had been stationed in Japan. They moved around a bit, and eventually settled in Sunnyside, WA where he graduated from high school in 1964. In November 1964 he joined the U.S. Air Force and was stationed in San Antonio, Denver, Tucson, and Miami, as well as in Ubon, Thailand and Kwangju, Korea. In 1968 when he left the Air Force, he joined his parents in Blaine. Not long after that he joined the Blaine Police Force, and six years later became Chief of Police. He retired after 28 years on the job. After retirement he attended Bellingham Technical College studying computer networking and was then hired in the BTC computer department from which he retired in 2002.
Butch met his first wife, Linda Powell, at a wedding in June 1969 where he caught the garter and she the bouquet. He told Linda’s dad that night he was going to marry her, which he did on September 27, 1969. Together they had three children, Nicki, Jeremy and Kellie. He was a loving and involved dad who did everything possible to attend every sporting event, concert, play, etc. He and Linda were happily married for 31 years until her death in January 2001.
Butch was fortunate to later meet Pat Thorpe, whom he married on June 5, 2004. Together they traveled the world on incredible trips that included an African safari, seeing the Sistine Chapel in Rome, Mexico, France, Russia and several trips to the Caribbean. His last trip was to New York City to watch his dog Tyler in the Westminster Dog Show. They also enjoyed spending time in their second home in Fountain Hills, AZ.
Butch was an active member of Grace Lutheran Church in Blaine for many years, including singing bass in the choir, and later attended Christ Lutheran Church in Ferndale. He was elected to the Whatcom County Fire Commission in 2003 and served until 2009.
Butch is survived by his wife Pat Hinchey; daughter Nicki (Brion) Cortez, son Jeremy (Kara) Hinchey and daughter Kellie (Jay) Burroughs; grandchildren Carson Cortez, Madison, Brady and Jace Hinchey, Jamie (Cieara), Kole and Cody Burroughs; great-granddaughter Presley Burroughs; numerous nieces, nephews, cousins and friends and his beloved dog Tyler. We will all miss him dearly.
A small private service will be held to lay Butch to rest. A celebration of life will be held later when conditions allow. You may share memories at www.westfordfuneralhome.com.
Jerry Dale Steinbach, born July 7, 1959, lifetime resident of Blaine, passed away peacefully in his home on Tuesday September 1, 2020, surrounded by loved ones after a long battle with cancer.
Jerry was a loving husband and father as well as a devoted Peepaw to his six grandkids, Zander, Riley, Tucker, Lena, Ruthie and Amara.
Jerry is survived by his wife of 37 years, Lori Behnke Steinbach; daughters Erica (Zach) Peckham of Las Vegas, Hannah (Matthew) Gordon, and Payton Steinbach of Blaine. Jerry has five remaining living siblings Glen (Joanne) Steinbach, Ron (Elaine) Steinbach, Randy (Theresa) Steinbach and Dixie Steinbach, as well as countless nieces and nephews.
No service will be held.
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