In 1971 J. Standard Baker Quoted " Drivers Towing Trailers  Are Four (4) Times As Unsafe As Those In Cars Alone! 

Parade deaths nationwide remain rare, but occur in strikingly similar fashion to Monday’s tragedy in Weld County
National Transportation Safety Board recommends more thorough safety plansBy Anna Staver | astaver@denverpost.com | The Denver Post
PUBLISHED: September 6, 2018 at 8:00 am | UPDATED: September 6, 2018 at 8:08 am

The death of an 8-year-old boy who was participating in Windsor’s annual Harvest Festival Parade was an accident, according to the Weld County Coroner, but the way he died was not an isolated incident.

For decades, stories appearing in local papers across the country have detailed tragic accidents along parade routes.

A 7-year-old boy from Maryland and a 8-year-old boy from Oklahoma both died in parade float accidents during 4th of July events in 2013. An 11-year-old girl from Texas and 9-year-old boy from New Hampshire both died after being run over during Christmas parades. The stories are strikingly similar. The child either fell or jumped off the float and was run over.

These types of accidents are rare, but they caught the attention of the National Transportation Safety Board after four people died and a dozen others were injured when a train collided with a parade float carrying wounded warriors in Texas in 2012. Two years later the agency issued a report that found “many communities and organizations across the U.S. don’t conduct risk assessments and implement safety plans.”

The report recommended local governments require written safety plans as part of the parade approval process that would include requirements for driver screening and safe float operation training. It also suggested that the absence of standardization for parade and special event safety across the country is a contributing factor in these accidents.

In Colorado, the requirements are mixed.


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Denver doesn’t require a written safety plan or offer guidance to parade drivers.

“However, all event-related permits and licensing managed by various city agencies include elements designed to ensure safe and compliant events,” Special Events Coordinator Jill Thiare said. “The city and event managers also coordinate with RTD when event locations interface with bus or train stops/routes.”

Denver also provides safety workshops for people who put on special events.Advertisement
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Most of Aurora’s major parades are run by the city, spokesman Michael Bryant said. Everything else requires a temporary use permit that works its way through various city departments that each offer their input prior to approval.

Weld County, which shares Windsor with Larimer County, requires a safety plan from people holding events held in the unincorporated areas of the county. It’s in the county’s code.

“And since the county and the city of Greeley share ownership of Island Grove Regional Park, we also require the same plans for the Weld County Fair and the Greeley Stampede – both of which are held at that facility,” spokeswoman Jennifer Finch said.

The City of Windsor did not respond to a request for comment about its parade approval process.

The reporter did not mention the 4 that died in July Of Last year...she never mentions Hayrides....right?   We have a web site www.paradesafety.org

The real reason why they don't really want to have a National Standard is because if they don't follow the Standards and something happens then it will be easier to sue. 

How many more "Striking Similar Accidents Have To Happen" before we finally get action?