An Eastpointe mother is warning other parents about the hidden dangers of sledding after her 10-year-old daughter suffered severe injuries in an accident at a local park.

Jennifer's daughter Cheyenne was sledding at Spindler Park on a Friday afternoon when what started as a fun winter day quickly turned into a terrifying emergency. The girl went down the back side of the hill, despite warning signs, and crashed into nearby poles.

Watch Carli Petrus' video report below: Eastpointe mother warns of sledding dangers after daughter's severe injuries

"I never would have thought they would have gotten hurt sledding like we go every year, we've always went," Jennifer said.

The accident left Cheyenne with a Stage 3 liver laceration that is almost a Stage 4, along with a severe concussion and possible brain damage due to brain swelling, according to Jennifer.

"I got a call that Cheyenne, you know, she was hurt, she was hurt bad," Jennifer said.

Watch our extended interview with Jennifer below: Extended interview: Mom talks about daughter's severe injuries after sledding accident

Now Jennifer is urging other parents to think twice before letting their children go sledding.

"I have heard of a broken arm over the weekend, and on the other side of the hill as well, someone hit a tree, someone went through the fence it's repetitive injury," Jennifer said.

The city of Eastpointe acknowledged awareness of the sledding activity on the hill. A spokesperson said in a statement: "While signage speaks to the risks of sledding on the hill, the City works to keep the hill as safe as possible, with staff routinely ensuring there are hay bales, fencing, and safety measures in place. We have empathy for the child and family involved, and will work to continue to make our parks and public spaces as safe as possible for all users."

Dr. Aamna Hafeez at Henry Ford Hospital says the best way to stay safe is to know the risks and take precautions.

"Sledding can definitely be a fun activity, but there are risks associated with it and those injuries can range from minor bumps and bruises all the way to severe head trauma," Hafeez said.

The doctor recommends families take safety precautions, with head protection being the most important.

"So, there's absolutely some precautions families can take in terms of safety for their children sledding. The most important being some sort of protection for their heads, so whether that's a helmet or a ski helmet or a biking helmet, either of those options because really what you're trying to do is prevent brain injuries," Hafeez said.

William Hirsch, who was at Spindler Park with his two young daughters, said sledding is an activity they enjoy regularly.

"It's something the kids love to do. It's an activity that gets us outside, gets us outdoors and something to do to have fun," Hirsch said.

He says he makes sure his girls are safe by going down the hill with them, making sure they're not going toward anything harmful.

"Sometimes, you slip and fall down, but you have to get back up, you know. It's a learning lesson," Hirsch said.

For Jennifer, her message is simple: awareness.

"It can happen, like I said, at any hill. Just because it was at this one doesn't mean that it can't happen at the one down the street from your house, right. So, just be aware," Jennifer said. "I just want these kids and people to be safe in general because it's scary."

This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.

As we continue News Literacy Week, we're lifting up the voice of one Birmingham librarian. She is making it her mission to make sure students learn how to separate fact from fiction early on.

The library at Birmingham Covington School recently turned into a full-on news literacy adventure with different learning stations and students led their families through each one to learn how to think critically about the information they see every day.

Watch Carli Petrus' video report below: Librarian hosts news literacy for kids and familys

Students at Birmingham Covington School are signing the news literacy pledge promising to pause, question, and verify before believing or sharing information.

Its never too young to start these skills," said Laura Amatulli, the librarian who organized the literacy night event.

It's designed for third and fourth graders and their families, and the goal is simple.

"To learn how to slow down, think critically, and ask smart questions before trusting and sharing information," said Amatulli.

Amatulli says this is especially important as artificial intelligence, or AI, becomes more prevalent in our lives.

"Were building habits of asking good questions. We want students to think, 'who created this? Why was this picture made?' Or 'why was this article made? What evidence supports this article?' and these critical thinking skills give them a lifelong piece in their toolbox," she said.

And it seems like those lessons are already sticking for fourth grader Melia Farr.

"How do you make sure what youre looking at is truthful? I asked.

"Well, its hard to make sure, but you have to like think about it and make sure it is, because its important, because if its not factual, then its not really that useful," she said.

Melia attended the event with her mom, Jasmine Farr, who says growing up, the news looked very different.

I remember getting the newspaper twice a day and it came on your porch and that was kind of it, you just took that for what it was but now we have it on internet, we have it on social media, youre getting it from left and right and all these different forms, you have to find out what really is the news," said Jasmine.

Jasmine says she wants her daughter to stay on the offense as AI technology continues to advance and she believes events like this one give kids the tools they need to do just that.

"It takes a village so schools cant do it alone, parents cant do it alone, and children definitely cant do it on their own so we all have to come together collectively and make sure that theyre protected, that theyre safe, that theyre learning and we can all do it together as a community," said Jasmine.

Southfield Police have wrapped up their investigation into a double shooting that left one woman dead and another hospitalized.

Watch Carli Petrus's video report: Southfield Police say no charges will be filed in fatal Bloom Lounge shooting

Investigators say a Bloom Lounge security guard taken into custody shortly after the shooting will not face any criminal charges.

The investigation revealed the incident began with a physical fight between a couple, according to police.

"During the altercation, the decedent's sister and her sister's husband were engaged in a physical dispute during which time the sister sustained a head injury," Barren said.

The situation escalated when Fields became involved in a physical altercation with her brother-in-law, which then shifted to a fight between Fields and her brother-in-law's sister, police said.

PREVIOUS REPORT: Woman killed by security guard outside Southfield lounge after domestic dispute Woman killed by security guard outside Southfield lounge after domestic dispute

Bloom Lounge security responded to the disturbance and began assisting the woman with the head injury when Fields pulled out a weapon on the security guard, according to investigators.

"The security guard drew his firearm and instructed her to back away. He then determined the object was a wrench and attempted to re-holster his weapon," Barren said.

Fields dropped the wrench but continued toward the security guard and removed a handgun from a cloth holster inside her waistband, police said.

Witnesses reported Fields was just one to two feet away when she raised her gun, according to investigators. The security guard then fired, striking her six times.

"The second woman who was injured earlier during the physical altercation was inadvertently struck in the leg by gunfire due to her close proximity to the incident," Barren said.

Both firearms were legally registered to their respective owners, police confirmed.

Community concerns about Bloom Lounge

Nearby residents have expressed concerns about Bloom Lounge becoming a problem in the area.

PREVIOUS REPORT: Shooting outside Southfield lounge leaves woman dead, neighbors demand action Shooting outside Southfield lounge leaves woman dead

"The club has become very disruptive," one resident said.

"It's a disturbance over there. I'd hate to run them out, but if they have to go, they have to go. We need our peace and quiet," another resident said.

Barren said next steps include talking to residents and the lounge owners "to address some of the concerns associated with this incident and then just the nature of bars and restaurants as a whole, with types of patrons that they draw."

"Our thoughts are with the families, loved ones, and community members affected by this incident," Barren said.

"While the criminal investigation has concluded, this remains a tragic incident that resulted in the loss of life and injury to another individual," he added.

This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.

Sam Marino, owner of Marino's Landscaping in Washington Township, said his salt bin is nearly empty when it should be full this time of year. The 20-year snow removal veteran said this winter has been anything but typical.

Watch Carli Petrus's video report: High price of salt impacting small businesses

"That bin's been moving very excessively. Normally, it doesn't move as rapid as it has been," Marino said.

Marino said his business typically salts 25 to 30 times per season, but in December alone, they've already completed 18 saltings at one retail shopping center.

The increased winter weather has driven salt prices from $125 per ton to $182 per ton a significant jump that's forcing businesses to make tough decisions.

"Some customers obviously understand that, other people don't, they're not willing to pay for it, and it creates a problem," Marino said.

For a large truck that holds about 18 tons of salt, that price increase translates to more than $1,000 additional cost per truckload. Small businesses like Marino's are now carefully monitoring their salt usage.

"It's impacting everybody, not just us," Marino said.

The high demand and rising costs are also affecting suppliers. Randy Gauthier with Metropolitan Materials said a shortage is very possible because most salt at the local mine is already allocated.

"Your government, your cities, they're going to get first dibs. They have a large amount of salt down at the mine right now that's paid for that they get first," Gauthier said.

To keep customers supplied, Gauthier said he's had to source salt from Ohio at triple the cost.

"Out of Ohio and we paid triple the cost to bring it into our yard to make sure that our customers stay taken care of," Gauthier said.

Gauthier warned the situation could worsen and advised customers to use salt wisely.

"People are going to have to understand that they need to light salt, not oversalt, right now. If they can plow and scrape, they might want to do that more to try to keep the shortage from going even worse because what happens is when people oversalt, it really affects the whole salt game," Gauthier said.

This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.