Each year, 13 million children - 1 out of 4 - are injured seriously enough to require medical attention. The Lowe's Great Safety Adventure is teaching children and parents how to avoid these injuries from happening in their home.

Roughly the size of a small house, the Lowe's Great Safety Adventure is a 1,200 square foot animated home that unfolds from two semi-tractor trailer trucks to create a replica of a living room, kitchen, bathroom, bedroom and backyard. Children and parents become "safety rangers" as they join a quest with tour guides and Rover, the Great Safety Adventure's Home Safety Hound, to search the house in an effort to locate common safety hazards. Below is a list of home safety tips from Rover that can make your household as safe as the rooms in Rover's house.

Living Room
· Secure area and throw rugs with rubber backing or double-sided tape
· Have handrails in all stairways
· Keep stairs clear of all items
· Cover the fireplace completely with a metal fire screen
· Place edge guards around sharp-edged furniture and fireplace hearths

Kitchen
· Post emergency numbers beside the kitchen phone
· Place working flashlights in the kitchen and check the batteries periodically
· Never leave cooking food unattended
· Store household cleaners in locked cabinets
· Install child safety latches on all cabinets within your child's reach

Bathroom
· Store bathroom cleaners in locked cabinets
· Place rubber mat or slip-resistant stickers in tubs
· Install grab bars in all bathtubs and showers
· Purchase medicine containers that have child-restraint caps
· Keep vitamin lids tightly closed and out of sight and reach of children
· Check dates on all prescriptions and throw away all out-of-date medicines

Bedroom
· Post emergency numbers beside each bedroom phone
· Place working flashlights in each bedroom and check the batteries periodically

Backyard
· Scout your lawn for toys, sticks and other objects that could shoot out from under the lawnmower
· Provide protective surfacing under and around all outdoor playground equipment


This year, the Lowe's Great Safety Adventure will reach an even greater number of children with the addition of www.coderedrover.org, an interactive Web component. Home safety tips, tour information and other safety links can be found on the site named in honor of the tour mascot. Visit the Web site to determine when the Lowe's Great Safety Adventure will be in your area.

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About the Author
In 1993, Lowe Companies, Inc. - the world's second largest home improvement retailer - founded Lowe's Home Safety Council with the vision of creating safer American homes. Since its formation, Lowe's Home Safety Council has invested more than $26 million to educate children, adults, seniors and families on how to improve the safety and security in their homes. For more information on the Council's initiatives, Lowe's Great Safety Adventure, and home safety, consumers can visit either loweshomesafety.org or coderedrover.org on the Web.

For free home safety brochure call 1-800 SAFE HOME