The lights, the sirens, the blood and the trauma were as real as it gets during a mock drinking and driving traffic accident that was staged in front of the Emergency Services Building, May 8.
More than 40 Grade 9 students from Jasper’s Junior/Senior High School witnessed firsthand the deadly consequences of drinking and driving, thanks to a program called Prevent Alcohol and Risk-Related Trauma in Youth (PARTY).
Inside a crushed vehicle, parked outside the fire hall, sat three actors in varying states of distress, each covered in blood as firefighters, paramedics and police descended on the scene.
The driver, who faired best, was immediately arrested and put in the back of a waiting police cruiser, while paramedics raced to stabilized the front passenger. In the backseat, a young women sat motionless, killed on impact.
“The idea is to show them how badly you could be hurt and then try to educate them that their actions don’t just affect themselves,” said Don Smith, Japer’s deputy fire chief.
After the staged accident, students headed over to the hospital’s emergency room where nurses raced to save the severely injured patient, who was at risk of bleeding to death.
The scene was one of organized chaos as nurses checked the patient’s vital signs and asked for units of blood while the patient moaned in agony.
Within minutes things went from bad to worse and the students witnessed the patient die on the table.
From there, students were led to the morgue before heading over to the victim’s services room, where Paul Schmidt, Jasper’s victim services coordinator, shared his experience talking with grieving families.
“It’s difficult,” said Schmidt about speaking to the students, “because you’re not just telling them about the process, you’re also telling them about your life.”
Afterward students headed back to the fire station where they heard from the RCMP about the legal consequences of drinking and driving. Darian Sillence, from Parks Canada, also talked to the students about the dangers of bush parties.
“I changed my view quite a bit on drinking, like bush parties,” said Walter Ostrander, a Grade 10 student.
To send the message home, Derrick Winters, a drinking and driving survivor, shared his story about his own fatal mistake, which killed his best friend and almost left him a paraplegic.
“The message I would tell people is to make smart choices for yourself and your loved ones,” said Winters, who spent time in Jasper recovering from his injuries.
Over the lunch hour, students were given a specific injury or disability that they were asked to simulate.
“Most people my age don’t think about the consequences when it comes to drinking or doing drugs,” said Hayden Kreizenbeck, a Grade 9 student. “But it does have serious consequences, you can see that from people whose lives have been affected by their choices.”
Paul Clarke
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