Brain Save is back this summer in Hearst and Kapuskasing.
Cochrane District EMS Commander Derrick Cremin says paramedics who aren’t on emergency calls will be out and about, watching for kids riding their bikes, skateboards and scooters, wearing helmets and other protective gear.
“If they identify someone, they’ll stop them and give them the opportunity for a draw for a bicycle from Canadian Tire,” says Cremin, “and they also get a free ice cream cone courtesy of McDonalds.”
Cremin says he and the medics would rather give you an ice cream cone than a ride in the ambulance, because you’ve fallen and suffered a brain injury.
He adds you would spend 50 or a hundred dollars on running shoes, so why not on a bike helmet? And he doesn’t buy the “not cool” argument.
“It’s important to prevent any related injuries and they can get some pretty cool helmets nowadays, and they don’t have to be expensive.”
Cremin adds that even going slow, if you fall and hit your head on concrete, the resulting brain injury can be life altering.
Brain Save runs all July and August.
