Tenn. High School Hosts Mock Crash to Display Dangers of Distracted Driving

March 23--Sophomores at Columbia Central High School were presented with a lifelike example of the dangers faced when texting and driving Tuesday.

The mock scenario, which presented a situation where a student accidentally ran over two of his fellow classmates, gave students a look at what a texting-related traffic accident might look like if one were to occur on campus.

Members of the Columbia Fire Department and the Maury Regional Ambulance Service quickly responded to the simulated accident and treated the "victims" played by CHS students.

"We try to give them something to think about to stimulate a discussion," School Resource Officer Tracey Duke said. "If we can get them to talk about it then we can get them to not do it and, hopefully, we can save lives.

The mock accident also allowed first responders a chance to practice their training and coordination abilities across departments.

After the victims were treated, the mock rescue continued with one student announced dead on-site and the other being airlifted to medical attention with a Vanderbilt LifeFlight helicopter.

At the same time, the driver of the vehicle was put under arrest by the authorities and taken into custody.

Those who participate in any activity that distracts them from the road are 23 percent more likely to be in an accident. This includes everything from texting, fiddling with the radio or trying to grab something from the floor of the car, Duke said.

While driving the on county's winding and narrow rural roads, that potential for an accident becomes even greater.

"Just from an officer's standpoint, we use the radio when we are in the car, when you are on those county roads you have to be more careful," Duke said.

He added that in 2014, more than 3,600 individuals died due to texting-related traffic accidents in the nation.

Both Duke and Tennessee Highway Patrol Trooper Chis Hannah gave a short presentation in Central's auditorium following the mock accident.

"The hardest thing that I have to do as a Tennessee State Trooper is knock on your mom and your dad's door and tell them you are not coming home because you've been killed in an automobile accident," Hannah told the students, who will soon be driving themselves to school.

He asked the students to consider how their passing would affect their own families.

"I promise you I have seen parents who have to live with that every day of their lives," Hannah said. "Do not put your family and your loved ones at risk of losing you."

Distracted driving is one of the biggest obstacles that law enforcement agencies are facing on a daily basis and it has become a national epidemic, both Hannah and Duke said. Not only do young drivers text behind the wheel, but older, more experienced drivers as well.

While he is out on patrol, Hannah says he commonly witnesses 7 out of 10 people using their mobile phones while driving.

"We want them to go home at night and come back to us the next day. We want all our kids to come back safe every day," Principal Roger White said.

White said he and his faculty stand behind any resource that makes his students realize the dangers of texting and driving, with the hope that his students will share the realities of that behavior with their own parents and peers.

He said a recent study watching drivers enter and leave the school showed that even more adults were on their phones while driving than students.

"That really surprised us," White said.

The principal also thanked all of the agencies who participated in the in exercise.

Representatives from the Columbia Police Department and the Maury County's Sheriff's office also responded to the scene.

Following the presentation from both Duke and Hannah, students sought out the two officers for more advice on how to confront issues of distracted driving in their own families and friend groups.

Human services teacher Derba Gidcomb said the event was a culmination of the BITZ (Be In The Zone) campaign, which sponsored a number of activities throughout the school year highlighting the importance of drivers keeping their eyes on the road and off their phones.

The campaign is run by local high schools in partnership with Monroe Carell Jr. Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt and sponsored by The Allstate Foundation and The Ford Motor Company Fund and Community Services.

"If we can save one person, then we made an impact and it was worth what we did today," Duke said.

Copyright 2016 - The Daily Herald, Columbia, Tenn.