Father, young son get Saved by the Belt awards

A Moraine man and his young son were presented Monday with a “Saved by the Belt” plaque from the Ohio State Highway Patrol after they were properly buckled up during a car crash last month on Interstate 75 in Dayton.

“I was traveling down northbound 75, me and my 2-year-old son, next thing you know there was a car coming up real fast behind me and they hit us going about 100 mph,” Chris Roberts said after receiving his certificate during a ceremony at the Dayton Post in Englewood.

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The other driver, a 20-year-old Covington, Ohio, man, struck Roberts’ 2020 Ford Mustang around 7 p.m. Oct. 3 as he tried to merge his 2011 Dodge Charger into the middle lane near the Stanley Avenue exit, according to an OSHP crash report.

The Mustang “spun out and struck the concrete median wall,” the report stated.

“If it wasn’t for the seat belt and my son being anchored in his seat properly I think it could have gone a lot worse than what it was,” said Roberts, 38, who added that the crash totaled his car. “Wear your seat belts because, believe it or not, it can make a big change because we’re just lucky to be here.”

Credit: Ohio State Highway Patrol

Credit: Ohio State Highway Patrol

Ohio State Highway Patrol Lt. Geoffrey Freeman said the “Saved by the Belt” program recognizes people whose seat belts saved them from serious injury or death and serves as a positive message to others that seat belts save lives.

Roberts was wearing his seat belt, and 2-year-old Colton was properly secured in a forward-facing child safety seat in the car’s back seat.

“We do believe that the reason they did not sustain serious injuries and/or death was because they had their seat belts on,” Ohio State Highway Patrol Lt. Geoffrey Freeman said.

The “Saved by the Belt” program recognizes people whose seat belts saved them from serious injury or death and serves as a positive message to others that seat belts save lives.

“Buckle up,” Freeman said. “It’s something that just takes a few seconds, but that few seconds could save your life.”