Write a commentEvery other year, just short of prom season, the Student Government of Altmar-Parish-Williamstown Jr./Sr. High School sponsors a Mock DWI vehicle crash scenario that sparks student emotions at the horror of poor driving decisions.
The scene was set up on County Route 22 between the APW Jr. /Sr. High School and Elementary School on May 14 at 8:30 a.m. APW students volunteer to play the roles of drivers and victims; make-up and replica wounds are done by Oswego County Stop DWI.
In this setup, one vehicle contained students that had stayed the night at a friend's house and were heading to Dunkin' Donuts before school. The other vehicle was "driven" by Jenna Knepper, who drank spiked punch and smoked marijuana at a party where she and her friends were saying goodbye to a foreign exchange student. Knepper's vehicle first struck a bicyclist (played by Emma Sheltra) and then collided head on with the second vehicle.
While the other eight students involved in the mock crash suffered serious or fatal injuries, the intoxicated actress had minor wounds. The officer narrating the scenario and explaining what was happening on the scene told the audience that it is often the case for innocent victims to experience the most suffering in drunk-driving situations.
With every effort toward mimicking a real accident, it took several minutes for the first responders to arrive on scene.
"You are in a rural area," said the narrator. "It takes time for medical personnel to get here."
The first to arrive are typically police officers who assess the situation, determine the resources needed and make the appropriate contact for those resources. In this demonstration, a helicopter was needed to transport an amputee who lost their arm (the bicyclist played by Sheltra).
Over time, ambulances, firefighters, emergency medical technicians and more police officers arrive to help. As the fireman tore apart twisted metal to gain access to victims, medical personnel hurried to treat and address the injured while the policeman conducted an investigation to determine the cause of the crash.
When asked by the trooper what happened, Federico Romanelli (a passenger in one of the vehicles who suffered an arm bone fracture) sobbed, "I don't know! I didn't see anything. All of the sudden there was this car . . . it came out of nowhere."
The officer administered a sobriety test to Knepper and placed her under arrest. The narrator explained the kinds of charges that Knepper might face in a real situation, but also stated that the legal charges would not compare to the guilt she would carry the rest of her life.
Oswego County District Attorney and coroner Gregory Oakes arrived on the scene to attend to the deceased. Hope Raider was killed instantly on impact, her body thrown through the front windshield of Knepper's car.
Onlookers watched as the accident unfolded before them, some brought to tears at the thought of the crash happening to themselves or friends they know and love. When the demonstration was complete, the students were brought into the auditorium where they witnessed Raider's theoretical funeral.
"When something like this happens to a student in your school, it changes the entire class," said Robert Lighthall from Oswego County Stop DWI. He stressed how crucial it is to have a plan for prom, and events like prom, because the consequences of one bad decision could be fatal.
APW district personnel and staff hope that the simulated crash was an eye-opening experience for the students that will help them to make safe driving choices in the future.
