No one...child or adult...should hit the track without high quality safety gear. As a friend once told me, when I was whining about the cost of a HANS device -"if you can't afford to be safe, you can't afford to race."
I have a 15yr old racing Legends, and an 8yr old in a Bando. We all understand and accept that some risk exists every time out, but my heart goes out to the family in Florida. I can't imagine what they're going through.