The life saving tool to have in your car when you drive in Southwest Florida

If your car ends up in the water, like one near Boca Raton on Monday, where a good samaritan rescued the occupants, there is one crucial tool that you should always have on you.

Smashing glass is easier said than done when a car is sinking and the stress level is soaring. Paula Digrigoli, the secretary of NCH’s Saving Healthy Children Coalition, said there are ways to prepare yourself for the situation because it is hard to imagine how to respond if you are in that situation.

It is imperative to stay calm. A tool with two pointy edges and a blade to cut the seatbelt can help you out. It is usually used to cut the seatbelt. Andrea Schuch, the spokeswoman for the Cape Coral Fire Dept., said everyone should have one inside their vehicle.

“You do want to have one of these in case there is damage,” Schuch said. “You do want to get the window open.”

But there is a catch.

“This will only work on your side glass windows in your car,” Schuch said, “so the front windshield is laminated to protect in car accidents.”

It is essential to know what type of glass your vehicle has because laminated is more difficult to break while tempered is easier. Regardless, search Google or Amazon for a “window breaker” and you can expect to pay around $10. Digrigoli recommends families teach everyone who rides in a car – not just the drivers – on what to do.

“The more you communicate, talk and practice these,” Digrigoli said, “you will be ready and be able to act fast.”