Toms River Helmet Wearers Again Rewarded With Ice Cream Vouchers

TOMS RIVER, NJ — In an ongoing effort to remind Toms River children of the law requiring them to wear bicycle helmets, the Toms River Police Department has begun Operation Brain Freeze for 2019.

Through the program, Toms River police reward youngsters wearing helmets while biking, riding skateboards or scooters, or roller skating or roller blading, with vouchers for ice cream cones at participating Toms River ice cream shops.

State law requires all children under the age of 17 to wear a helmet while biking and other activities, to protect their heads in case of an accident.

A 2013 study found that helmets reduced serious head injuries in bicycle accidents, cutting the risk of severe traumatic brain injury by 52 percent and the risk of death by 44 percent, according to a Reuters report.

Riders with helmets also had 31 percent lower odds of facial fractures, the report said, quoting the study.

In the U.S., there were 900 deaths and an estimated 494,000 emergency room visits due to bicycle-related injuries in 2013, the Reuters report said, quoting the study, which analyzed records of 6,267 people treated in 2012 for bleeding inside the skull after a bicycle accident.

One quarter of patients had been wearing a bicycle helmet at the time of their accident. Just over half of the patients had severe traumatic brain injuries and 3 percent died.

"We want everyone to have a safe enjoyable summer," Toms River police said in the Operation Brain Freeze post. "Officers will be out looking for young riders in the community who abide by the law and wear their bicycle helmets."

The police department stressed that ice cream vouchers will be handed out only by uniformed officers in marked Toms River patrol vehicles.

The participating ice cream shops are:

• Rita's, 1687 Lakewood Road
• Mrs. Walker's Ice Cream Parlor, 908 Fischer Blvd.
• Yellow Brick Road Carousel, 1857 Hooper Ave.
• Barnacle Bill's, 1968 Route 35 North
• Summer Sweets, 3071 Route 35 North
• Dairy Queen, 931 Fischer Blvd.

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