From Deseret News archives:

Utah Scouts preparing to push summer safety

Published: Friday, June 2, 2006 9:24 p.m. MDT
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Other tragedies include the death of 15-year-old Boy Scout Paul Ostler, who was struck by lightning at Camp Steiner in the High Uintas. A device has been installed at Camp Steiner that is able to give advance warning to possible lightning strikes.

The Boy Scouts are also facing a $14 million lawsuit for the cost of fighting a 14,000-acre fire in the Uintas in 2002. The lawsuit alleges Scouts started the fire.

In April, the Great Salt Lake Council adopted a new fire policy for 2006. The rules require fires to be supervised by an adult at least 21 years old and to be built inside metal fire-bowl containers at least 18 inches high. All flammable materials must be kept 4 to 6 feet away from the fire.

The tragedies of missing children in the outdoors prompted a Cottonwood Heights mom to create a new "safety pack" designed to give children some wilderness survival skills.

"I was like so many Utahns, just emotionally involved with the entire experience with Brennan," Robyn Frampton told the Deseret Morning News. "If they are going to go out there, I want to make sure they have some ability to keep themselves alive or help themselves be rescued."

Looking for backpacks and bags for children, Frampton said she didn't find anything useful for a child. So she created the Tyke Hike Safety Pack, which looks like a fanny pack but features hidden pockets for survival gear.

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Early prototypes failed because small children would take the equipment out of a backpack or a bag.

"We just built a bag for my boys. The problem is little kids are little kids, and if they see it they're going to pull it out and crack the glow sticks," she said. "We designed it with hidden compartments. Kind of out of sight out of mind; the tabs are color coded in red so they know that red is the color of emergency."

She believes the hidden pockets will keep the glow sticks, poncho, thermal blanket, whistle, mirror, compass and perimeter markers safe from tampering until the time they are needed.

"It also comes with an instruction manual that's illustrated to show cause and effect," she said.

Since creating the Tyke Hike Safety Pack in April, Frampton said they have sold more than 500 at $14.95 each. She pitched them at a recent Scout-O-Rama and is in talks to sell them on the QVC cable shopping channel.

"No matter where they go, they have the essentials to keep them alive and assist in their own rescue," Frampton said.


E-mail: preavy@desnews.com; bwinslow@desnews.com

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Image
Edward A. Linsmier

Robyn Frampton, creator of the Tyke Hike Safety Pack, fastens one of the safety belts on her 8-year-old son, Parker. It has hidden pockets for survival gear, including glow sticks, a poncho, thermal blanket, whistle, mirror, compass and perimeter markers.

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