Ah spring . . . the whirring of lawnmowers . . . the smell of fresh cut grass . . . the sirens of ambulances carrying the injured away . . . According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, each year, 800 children are run over by riding lawn mowers or small tractors and more than 600 of those incidents result in amputation; 75 people are killed and 20,000 injured . . . one in five deaths involves child . . . More than 80,000 people go to the emergency room each year because of lawn mower injuries . . . leading cause of injuries is debris thrown by the blades . . . in a single year 810 people were treated in Ontario emergency rooms for injuries caused by lawnmowers . . . in the main men . . . children younger than 15 and adults over 60 predominate . . . 70% of people use gas-fueled mowers, 15% electric, and just 4% use a manual-propelled mower.

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