"Text Me, I'm Dying to Hear from You"

The dangers of texting while driving were brought home in dramatic fashion this past Friday morning, April 15, at Lamar High School. A mock car accident resulted in one fatality, the arrest of the teenaged driver and two passenger accident-injuries. Students lined the sidewalk out side the school, watching response teams from Lamar fire and ambulance, Lamar police, state patrol, EMT responders, the county coroner and a local funeral home. Each role was conducted in real time, going through the necessary steps of dealing with the dead, caring for the injured and using emergency equipment to cut open the car to reach the injured students trapped inside the vehicle.

Before the exercise began, Lamar Fire Chief Marshall Cook said the local departments conduct this type of scenario every few years at the school. "We have done a drinking and driving response, but more and more students are texting, driving and having accidents, and we wanted to point out those dangers," he commented. Cook said the exercise is conducted in two parts, outside emergency response, and indoors for comments from the students. A brief, mock trial is held with lawyers and a judge, testimony is given and those found guilty are sentenced. Cook's Towing in Lamar supplied the vehicle for the exercise.

Category:

News & Politics

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• crash
• car
• accident
• mock
• fatality
• arrest
• teenaged
• driver
• passenger
• injuries
• state
• patrol
• Lamar High School
• automobiles