Students Take Part in Motor Vehicle Accident Demonstration Drill

posted September 14, 2022

The crash scene seemed real. Sirens, smoke, emergency personnel, and students being removed from smashed cars and taken away by ambulance. The event ended with students attending a mock funeral.

The morning’s activities were all part of a motor vehicle accident demonstration drill hosted by several community organizations. Cardinal High School students participated in a program entitled Aftermath: Distracted or Impaired Driving. The program focused on making teen drivers aware of the consequences that come from driving distracted or impaired. This includes drinking, texting, vaping, or any other type of distraction while operating a motor vehicle.

More than 10 community organizations collaborated on planning this event, including Wapello County Sheriff’s Department, Indian Hills Paramedic Program, Wapello County Emergency Management, Agency Fire Department & First Responders, Batavia Fire Department & First Responders, Eldon Fire Department & First Responders, Cranston Family Funeral Home, Southern Iowa Mental Health Center, Deran’s Towing, KTVO, and local media partners. The live simulation was designed to help students understand that their actions could have grave consequences. Programs such as this are available across the country but community members decided to pool their resources and create their own program for the school district.

Students were released for the drill this morning, with a mock accident scene in progress when they arrived at the area near Ashland Road. The drill included a graphic, real-life scene of a motor vehicle accident with injuries ranging from minor to severe, including a mock- fatality. After students witnessed the aftermath of the mock accident, they returned to the high school auditorium to attend the mock funeral of one of the accident victims.