Dangerous "Safety Feature" (how the baby went flying)

[zamboni]

So, this weekend, we decided the baby (almost 2) is old enough to start learning to sleep on the bunk itself.  While camping, she's always slept in a porta-playpen sitting on the back bunk.

We bought a bed-rail which blocks the narrow opening to the back bunk on our hybrid.  Put "noodles" around the mattress next to the tenting (snaps that hold the tenting on are STRONG), and pillows.

We thought the baby was asleep... and my wife heard a quiet "zip" sound.  Now, she knows & loves zippers, but we wanted her to sleep.

My wife parted the curtain on the bunk -- just in time to see the baby do a standing, startled (swan-dive-like) fall out of the open back of the bunk.

New "Safety Feature": the screens in bunks unzip as an "emergency exit"!  We hadn't really noticed it; we were used to regular (older) popups where the screens were sewn in.  The baby had silently unzipped every window, then the screen itself - fully open.

My wife screamed "the baby fell out of the camper" and we rushed outside.

She was lying face down on the ground, not moving.  We gently rolled her over and she was limp.  For a few moments, we thought she was dead, then thankfully she started screaming.

Fortunately, she didn't break anything.  Bad scratches from the very dry leaves & twigs, so we assume she landed feet first and fell over.


Zip ties now permanently prevent those screens from opening

Sorry, but in an emergency, one can go through the screen.  I wouldn't wait to unzip it if it were that bad.  If it weren't that bad, I'd go out the camper door!

I'd urge anyone with young kids who don't really understand gravity and are very inquisitive, to zip-tie or lock those exit screens until their kids are old enough to know how to use them...

[ForestCreature]

Wow, that had to of been pretty darned frightening for you guys. Glad the baby diddn't get seriously hurt.

[OC Campers]

Glen-how horrible!!!  How is Shelby doing?  . I could understand a fall thru the bottom of the bed where the canvas attatches but never thru the window.  I am not thinking good thoughts about this Jayco safety feature.  
 
Jacqui

[ILUVTHEBEACH]

Thank goodness your daughter was alright.  I would have screamed like your wife did and then after everything settled down, I would have screamed at someone at the dealership for not telling me about the "emergency exit".

[Mentol1]

Glad to hear that she's okay from her Base Jump.  Make's you rethink what's underneath the bed where the little one's sleep now.

[Kelly]

YIKES!!!  That is so scary.  I'm glad your little one is okay.

My old Palomino actually had signs above the bunk end windows that said EXIT ~ must have taken me about 4 trips to realize that meant that BOTH zippers unzipped.[/FONT]

[tjy355]

The good news:  she won't do that again.

[zamboni]

actually had signs above the bunk end windows that said EXIT ~ must have taken me about 4 trips to realize

Ding-Ding-Ding-Ding!  We have a Winner!

Ours say that, but I never really noticed the screen unzipping.  We bought it in late September, so never really opened the bunk windows - until this weekend (and AFTER the baby took her "swan dive").  I figured "exit" meant "if you need to get out, push hard because these cheesy screens won't hold that much".

Mea culpa!


On a better note, our baby safely arrived in Denver today; my wife's cousin took her to Colorado to visit my parents (and nephew, staying with them) and be completely spoiled for a few weeks.  Gives us a nice, long, break -- but, I sent an expensive webcam with the baby for frequent "conversations"