Mock Crash Drives Point Home

The girls ran into the crowded high school gymnasium at about 10:45 am on Tuesday.

"There's been an accident!" they screamed. Soon, students from both O'Neill High School and St. Mary's High School filled the lawn to witness a mock crash on Hynes Street.

The "accident" was a mock crash staged by North Central Community Care Partnership, the Nebraska State Patrol, the O'Neill Police Department, Central Nebraska Community Services, Avera St. Anthony's Hospital, Life Flight of Norfolk and O'Neill and St. Mary's High Schools. With prom and graduation drawing near, organizers hoped to illustrate the traumatic and devastating results that drunk driving can have on youth in the community.

The staged accident involved two vehicles and 13 teenage students. Drivers of both vehicles were driving drunk and the vehicles hit head on. Three were dear at the scene, two received minor injuries, three sustained critical injuries, one was Life Flighted to Avera St. Anthony's Hospital and four were uninjured because they were wearing seat belts.

The student injuries simulated what would happen in such an accident to passengers and drivers in an overloaded vehicle with people unsecured by seat belts.

Arriving at the scene, the O'Neill Police Department apprehended the two drivers, handcuffed them and placed them in squad cars. Later, they would be administered Breathalyzer tests.

The O'Neill Fire department went to work extricating the youths from a car in which the doors were jammed shut. The Jaws of Life was used to remove the passenger's side door and remove the passengers.

Several passengers in the second truck were not so luck. Pronounced dead at the scene, there were lined up on the sidewalk and placed in body bags for transport to the mortuary.

The chilling site of watching medical personnel zip up a bag on the students who gazed on in silence.

The Life Flight helicopter of Norfolk set down on the high school track and one student was transported to Avera St. Anthony;'s Hospital where trauma personnel treated the injuries.

Avera St. Anthony's Hospital conducts two in-house trauma drills annually, but Tuesday's exercise was good practice, said Sr. Norma Norton, Pastoral Care, Avera St. Anthony's Hospital. The only differences between Tuesday's exercise and a real emergency were the police, who would have come into the emergency rooms to question the accident victims, said Sr. Norma. Also, following an accident, family members and friends usually follow an ambulance to the hospital.

The simulation was developed by Roger Wiese of NCCCP, Tracy Cassidy of CNCS and Bill Price of the Nebraska State Patrol.

"Making Holt County safe is one of our community goals," said Roger Wiese of NCCCP. " And that includes reducing youth risk behaviors. This is an educational event designed to illustrate the harsh consequences of youth risk behavior and to educate kinds and parents."

Wiese hoped that students witnessing Tuesday's accident would talk with their family about what they saw and that parents would talk with their kids.

"Parents need to ask their children 'Who are you gong with?' 'Where are you going?' 'What are you going to do?'" said Wiese.

The mock crash was filmed and will be shown in other high schools throughout the nine-county health department district, he said.

"If this makes an impact on just one student and his or her family, it is all worth it,: said Tracy Cassidy, the Nebraska Officer of Highway Safety Project Coordinator for Holt County.

Prior to the staged scene, David Young, M.D. surgeon at Avera St. Anthony's Hospital, gave a graphic slide presentation, showing the impact a windshield can have on an unsecured vehicle passenger.

"The hardest thing I have to do as a doctor is go out to parents and tell them, 'Sorry, we did everything that we could do, but we couldn't save him,'" said Young.

Dr. Young cited three major causes of vehicle injuries for youth: not wearing a seat belt; erratic driving; and alcohol consumption.

Statistics support the fact that seat belts save lives, said Dr. Young. One year after the national seat belt safety law passed in 1983, traffic fatalities dropped by 10,000 in the United States, he said.

People don't have t wear their seat belts, but "Do you feel lucky?" asked Dr. Young who proceeded to show photos of traffic accident victims." You won't feel lucky unless you make your own luck (and wear a belt.)"

Dr. Young also told the crowd that although youth aged 16-24 represent less than 20 percent of all the miles traveled on US highways, they account for 42 percent of all alcohol-related accidents.

Although air bags can reduce injury, they must be used in conjunction with seat belts to be most effective.

Spring is one of the peak seasons for vehicle accidents and nearly 68 percent of all injuries are suffered by persons between the ages of 15-44 during the months of Match, April and May, according to the Nebraska Department of Roads. Young drivers are also involved in a disproportional number of accidents. According to 2000 figures, 53.6 percent of all traffic accidents involved drivers 34 years of age and younger.

"This is for you," Nebraska State Patrol officer Bill Price told the students at the conclusion of the demonstration which lasted approximately 45 minutes. "We want you to be safe - your parents, your teachers and your friends. Don't' drink and drive and always wear your safety belt.

The demonstration did have an impact on the students with many voicing a desire to change their habits.

"I think I'll start wearing a seat belt,": said Zach Ascherl.

"It helped me make a decision to buckle up," said Bryan Folkers.

Jenifer Winters viewed the accident with interest. Involved in a life-threatening accident last summer. Jenifer has no recollection of flying 100 feet through the air. Her injuries left her in the hospital for over six weeks.

"It gave me a chance to actually se what the reality of it would be," she said. "You can't say it enough - Don't drink and drive and always wear a safety belt."

Many students were hesitant to address the issue of teenage drinking, but one student honestly confessed to having a change of heart.

"I will definitely wear a seat belt from now on," she commented. "I plan to make better decisions, like not being with people who drink and drive and always having a designated driver."

Another youth stated that the mock crash served as a wake-up call.

"It made me think that I need to be a little bit more careful," he said. "It hit pretty close to home … to see my buddies hurt .." he said.

"It was gross," said Patrick Conway of the slide presentation by Dr. Young. "I will probably be buckling up after seeing those pictures."

Although she had already made a pledge not to drink, Jamie Hatfield said that the event taught her something.

"I guarantee that I will war my seat belt more often," she said. "It was a good reminder."

Few students questioned following the demonstration made light of the event. Many were shaken and vowed to make a conscious effort to wear a seat belt and to make better decisions when driving.