Putting your feet on the car’s dashboard while in the passenger seat might seem innocent, but the Chattanooga Fire Department issued a reminder about how dangerous it can be.
In a Facebook post, the department said that airbags deploy at speeds between 100 and 220 miles per hour. Therefore, if a car is involved in a crash and a passenger’s feet are on the dashboard, the airbag could cause serious injuries.
Chattanooga Fire officials also shared the reminder last year. Colin Bennett first posted about the potential consequences.
Several people involved in such accidents shared their experiences with comments on the post.
Heidi LeAnne Finney wrote that she had her right foot on the dashboard when the driver of a car she was in hit a stopped vehicle travelling at 65 miles per hour.
The airbag deployed and “crushed my ankle, damaged my knee, broke my femur in 2 place and I had multiple face lacerations,” she wrote.
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Another commenter, Amber Ogles, wrote “I sadly know someone who was killed this way."