Mock accident demonstrates the costs of distracted driving
River Ridge School District hosted a mock accident for high school students on April 30. Fire fighters and emergency personnel from Bloomington and Glen Haven were on-hand to demonstrate the aftermath of a car accident. (Steve Van Kooten/Courier Press)
Fire fighters employ the jaws of life and other equipment to take apart one of the vehicles.
First responders and other emergency personnel line up to speak with the students at the end of the presentation.
By Steve Van Kooten
Outside River Ridge School, in the parking lot between the school building and the green house, two cars were smashed together, a tangle of metal and plastic. Three students, Daisy Hernandez, Avery Drew and Ellaina Gage, lied in the front seats, simulating unconsciousness.
Across the parking lot, on bleachers, approximately 160 River Ridge High School students watched as ambulances, fire trucks and squad cars from the West Grant Rescue Squad, Glen Haven Fire Department and Bloomington Fire Department arrived at the scene. Then a deputy from the Grant County Sheriff’s Department arrived, followed by the county coroner.
Denny Cathman, a member of the West Grant Rescue Squad with more than 20 years of experience in emergency services, said, “When I was young, I thought I was invincible, but I’m not. Stuff like this can happen to anyone.”
Firefighters and paramedics rushed to the students’ aid. Cathman told the students about the smells: oil, antifreeze and gas. He told them about the powder from deployed air bags that can burn a person’s skin.
The scenario, a head-on collision on the night of River Ridge’s senior prom, ended with one injured, one in critical condition and one dead. The reason? Distracted driving.
Cathman used real-life experience to formulate the accident’s backstory. “I was involved in a car accident where the guy went into our lane, and that was distracted driving. It was years and years ago, and he died in the accident. I can close my eyes and still see the accident, and it was 40 years ago.”
According to Cathman, the average amount of time someone takes to look at a text message is 4.6 seconds; in that time, a car going 55 miles per hour can travel the length of a football field.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, in 2022, more than 3,300 people were killed as a consequence of distracted driving, and the Center for Disease Control projects that number to stay above 3,000 in 2024.
Cathman said 42 percent of high school students admit they have texted or used their cell phone while driving.
“No human life is worth losing over a phone call or a text message,” said Cathman.
Phyillis Fuerstenberg, the county’s coroner, emphasized those consequences after the mock accident finished. “I don’t want to meet you like this, so think before you do it.”
Sheriff’s Deputy David Underwood said emergency responders and law enforcement were seeing distracted drivers “far too often.”
“I could spend my entire day pulling people over who drive past, and they’re clearly looking at their phone,” said Underwood. “The phone can wait. Pull over or make a stop.”
Underwood said the consequences were severe for taking an unnecessary risk. “You have to live with the guilt that in the four seconds you took to look away from the road, you caused the death or the severe injury of another person.”
“We’re trying to drill it into their heads,” said Fuerstenberg.
“We work through this stuff, and it’s hard for us to do this all the time,” said Cathman. “We want you guys to be safe. We like to stay home at night.”
