If it wasn’t for the helmet, I wouldn’t have survived the accident – says Aleksandra, who could have died on a bicycle. A woman knows perfectly well that a helmet on her head is mandatory, but many people forget about it. That is why the graphics with animals in the new campaign of the Podlaskie Voivodeship are to remind us of this.
Aleksandra Piekarska had an accident on a bicycle three years ago. – The doctors absolutely said that if it wasn’t for the helmet on my head, I would not have survived the accident – admits Aleksandra Piekarska.
Mrs. Aleksandra suffered a cranial injury, she had an open fracture of the nose, a cracked eye socket, fractures of the temporal bone and a hematoma in the brain. I was forbidden to move. They waited until the hematoma was absorbed, the victim recalls.
Today, Mrs. Aleksandra is fully functional and has returned to her bike, and not only she encourages riding with a helmet. The Podlaskie Voivodeship has also launched an official campaign.
– The longest section of Green Velo is located in our voivodeship and is almost 600 kilometers long, and a lot of people visit our voivodeship by bicycle – points out Sebastian Łukaszewicz, Deputy Marshal of the Podlaskie Voivodeship.
The action uses graphics of animals that are characteristic of Podlasie – beavers, moose, wild boars and wolves. In addition, on each graphic there are slogans relating to individual species, for example – “Defend beaver without a helmet!” or “Drive carefully. Wear a helmet!”.
– We used technical innovations, i.e. artificial intelligence, which generated these images – explains Łukaszewicz.
Safety first
Every campaign to raise awareness is vital. – We know that you have to have these helmets, but we don’t have them. That’s how we were brought up, says Krzysztof. That is why it is so important to build good role models from an early age.
– Children by imitating grandparents, parents, carers, when they see that carers put on a helmet on their heads, they will naturally do it – explains junior asp. Anna Banaszewska-Jaszczyk from the Provincial Police Headquarters in Gdańsk.
The child was cycling along the ring road of WarsawContact 24/Kamil
The finale of a bicycle accident without a helmet can be tragic. Between death and a minor abrasion, there is a whole range of serious consequences, doctors remind. – You can end up with aphasia, i.e. speech disorders – points out Jakub Wiśniewski, a neurosurgeon from the Hospital. Nicolaus Copernicus in Gdańsk.
A well-fitted helmet does not move or fall, and the straps are just an additional protection. The basic mistake is to wear the helmet too high, because it will not protect the head. Fortunately, however, many people know that safety comes first. One of them is Mrs. Aleksandra, who has been riding in competitions for years and has great control over the bike, but she does not ride without a helmet. “Anything can happen, and the brakes may not work, and a small pebble may deflect the wheel,” points out the woman.
Main photo source: Marshal’s Office of the Podlaskie Voivodeship