A St. Charles, Michigan, woman and her three young children were injured following a vehicle crash, with the mother sustaining severe injuries and the children, thankfully less so, thanks in part to car seats. The single-car accident occurred Thursday, February 22, just before 11 p.m. on Flint Street, ABC12 reported. The Saginaw County Sheriff's Office informed that the 24-year-old driver veered off the road, careering into a nearby tree.

With severe injuries that included a broken femur and potentially devastating head trauma, the woman was quickly transported to Hurley Medical Center. Her present condition is undisclosed. Riding with proper restraints, her three children, a 5-year-old boy and two girls, aged 3 and 1, suffered injuries deemed non-life-threatening, as per the Tri Township Fire Department's assessment, WNEM reported. They were also taken to Hurley Medical Center for treatment.

The cause behind the woman's sudden swerve off the road remains uncovered. The Sheriff's Office is spearheading the ongoing investigation to shed light on the chain of events leading to the accident. Meanwhile, first responders had to employ hydraulic rescue tools to free the trapped driver from her minivan's wrecked hull highlighting the grim severity of the crash's immediacy.

This accident doubles as a grim reminder of the critical importance of child safety seats. Per the Tri-Township Fire District, cited by Mid Michigan Now, safety seats safeguard the lives of their young passengers. Michigan law mandates that children under the age of four ride in the back seat in a car seat, barring certain exceptions, and all children must be buckled into a car seat or booster seat until they are either 8 years old or 4 feet 9 inches tall, adhering to which comes first.