MOCK CAR CRASH SCRIPT. Driver; has been drinking; wearing seatbelt. Backseat behind driver; has not been drinking; not wearing seatbelt

Transcription

1 MOCK CAR CRASH This program is probably different from any other traffic safety program you have seen in the past. You are going to hear and see exactly what victims of a car crash would experience during and after the crash. This will occur in real time as it does in real situations. Fatal traffic crashes are the leading cause of death for young people in Indiana and in the United States. Today, we are going to witness what takes place in a serious injury and/ or fatal traffic crash. This crash involved striking a fixed object. The object could be a tree, utility pole, bridge, or any other stationary object. This type of accident can occur anywhere in a city, on a county road, or on a busy interstate highway. What you see before you is the result of this type of crash. The dynamics of this crash, as well as all crashes, have many variables. The most significant variable that affects the severity of the crash is speed. Consider the length of a football field. The two pylons before you represent that distance 300 feet. That is the distance needed to stop a vehicle traveling at 55 mph to avoid an accident. To illustrate the significance of speed, if we changed the speed of our crashed vehicle from 55 to 65 mph and keep our stopping distance the same 300 feet, our crash vehicle will not stop in the 300 feet, but crash going 35 mph. A crash of 35 mph will produce the kind of damage and injury you will see before you today. Half of all injury-producing accidents occur at speeds of less than 40 mph. 1

2 MOCK CAR CRASH SCRIPT Victim # 1: Victim # 2: Victim # 3: Victim # 4 Driver; has been drinking; wearing seatbelt Backseat behind driver; has not been drinking; not wearing seatbelt Front seat passenger; has not been drinking; wearing seatbelt improperly Backseat passenger; has been drinking; not wearing seatbelt CRASH OCCURS AT THIS TIME Witness: Go for help! Narrator: In the first 10 th of a second: The front bumper and chrome frosting of the grillwork collapsed. In the second 10 th of a second: The hood rose, crumpled, and smashed into the windshield. The rear wheels left the ground. The fenders contacted the object, forcing their rear edges over the front doors. The passengers continued to move forward at the vehicles original speed. At twenty times the normal force of gravity, their bodies each weighed 3,200 pounds. If their legs were straight, they would snap at the knee joints. In 4/10ths of a second: The car s front 24 inches have been demolished, but the rear end is still traveling about 35mph, along with all four passengers. The engine impacts into the object. The 6/10ths of a second: The brake pedal sheared off the floor board. The car body bent in the middle, shearing bolts and welds. The rear of the car begins to fall, the rear wheels slamming into the pavement. 2

3 In 7/10 ths of a second: The body of the car was forced out of shape ejecting the unrestrained, rear seat passenger out the door window, jamming the doors shut, and trapping the other three victims inside the car. Narrator: The driver of the car is an (age) year-old (gender). He/ She has been drinking, but was luckily wearing his/her seatbelt and the vehicle has an airbag in the steering wheel. At impact, his/her body was thrown forward, with the air bag and seat belt absorbing most of the forces involved in the crash. The extent of his/her injuries were a few bumps and bruises. The driver is conscious and is being forced to watch the following events unravel before him/her. (victim 2) is a (age) year-old (gender). He/She has not been drinking, was riding in the rear seat, but was not wearing a seat belt. At impact, (victim 2) was thrown into the roof of the car and out the side window causing massive head and brain injuries. He/She also hit the door post, causing large tears of both the lung and the liver. (victim 2) is losing massive amounts of blood. At this time, his/her vital signs show a blood pressure: 60/40, pulse rate: 160, and respiratory rate: 4. (victim 2) is comatose and not responsive. If he/she does not receive medical attention within 5 minutes from the time of the crash (victim 2) will DIE! The dispatcher receives the call and sends a police unit and a rescue squad. Keep in mind that, in some cases, the rescue personnel must drive from their home to the fire department and then to the accident scene. Depending on the location, the first unit my not arrive for 10 to 15 minutes, many times even longer because of onlookers 3

4 blocking the roadway around the accident. A PI is the police and rescue code for an accident with injuries. (victim 2) has 2 minutes to live. The front seat passenger is (victim 3), an (age) year old (gender). Though sober, he/she was wearing a seat belt, but had placed the shoulder strap behind his/her back something that he/she often did when riding in the front seat. At impact, s (victim 3) upper body flew forward into the windshield and dashboard of the car. s (victim 3) face has smashed the windshield, causing several facial lacerations. Additionally, multiple glass shards have been imbedded into his/her face. He/She suffers from a severe concussion. Multiple ribs were broken as he/she impacted the dash causing a large segment of his/her chest wall to move paradoxically as he/she attempts to breathe. His/Her underlying lung has been badly bruised and no longer functions properly. Both his/her liver and spleen have been ruptured at impact and he/she is quickly losing large amounts of blood into his abdomen. Lastly, s (victim 3) knee impacted the dashboard causing his/her left hip to be torn from its socket. He/She is in shock with a blood pressure of 80/60, pulse rate of 130, and respiratory rate of 30 and labored. (victim 3) is experiencing indescribable pain. (victim 2) has just died! (victim 4), who was not wearing a seatbelt, and has been drinking, was thrown forward onto the front passenger seat. His/Her chest is crushed against the seat, causing several ribs to break. One of these broken ribs punctured his/her left lung, causing it to collapse. (victim 4) remained awake through all of this and with each gasp for breath he/she is experiences immense pain as the broken bone ends grate against each other. Additionally, his/her spleen, which sits beneath his/her lower ribs, has been ruptured and is losing blood into his/her abdomen. At this time, his/her vital signs are: blood pressure: 100/80, pulse rate: 80, and respiratory rate: 36. 4

5 THE FIRST UNIT ARRIVES As the first units arrive on the scene, the first concern is to evaluate the condition of the victims. Since (victim 2) is deceased, there will be no immediate efforts to remove his/her body from the scene. All efforts will be directed toward saving the living. The police officer s primary objective is to protect the accident scene. He must first consider the safety of the victims, rescue workers, and bystanders. Once the EMTs have arrived, he will also gather evidence to be used in court, if necessary. He will try to determine what caused the accident and who is responsible. He will also determine what charges, if any, will be filed against the driver involved, and may advise them of what they will be charged with. The medic has just called for a 10-79, which is a request for a coroner. The rescuers have decided that they must remove the door to safely remove the driver. Because of the seriousness of the front seat passenger s injuries, care flight has been requested. This will take additional time, but with today s smaller, lighter cars, it is necessary. The tool the rescue personnel are using are a Hurst Rescue Tool, also called the Jaws of Life. It can exert 7000 pounds of pressure at the tips. This presents a certain amount of danger to the victims and the rescuers, which is why the victims are covered and the rescuers are wearing protective clothing. The rescue squad personnel will help (victim 1) from the car. (victim 1), who was wearing his/her seatbelt, seems to be confused but has received very minor injuries. He/She is now being tested for diminished reactions due to use of alcohol or drugs. This test is called a field sobriety test. The driver has 5

6 trouble doing what the officer is requesting him/her to do, and is handcuffed and placed in the back of a cruiser to be taken to the police station. Remember that throughout this process (victim 3) is continuing to lose large amounts of blood from his/her ruptured spleen and broken left leg. He/She is slipping further into shock with each passing minute. Also, he/she continues to gasp for air each time he/she breathes, crying in pain with each breath. His/Her vital signs have deteriorated to blood pressure 60/40, pulse rate of 120, and respiratory rate of 30 and labored. (victim 3) will be extricated quickly and safely, A KED will be placed on his chest to decrease the abnormal movement. A high flow oxygen mask was applied to assist his breathing and administer extra oxygen. Two IVs will be started and MAST trousers applied to support his circulation. Due to his injuries and shock, (victim 3) the care flight will transport him to the Ball Memorial in Muncie. Upon arrival at the ER, s (victim 4) injuries will quickly be evaluated. An incision will be made between his/her ribs on the left side of his/her chest and a large tube will be inserted to help expand her collapsed left lung. Another large tube will be placed through his/her nose and down into his/her stomach to empty it. A third large tube will be placed in s (victim 4) bladder to monitor his/ her urine output. Blood will be drawn from his/her arm and sent to the lab to check his/her blood count. Prior to going into surgery, the surgeon will make an incision below s (victim 4) naval and insert a small tube into his/her abdomen to find the bleeding from the spleen. Within an hour, (victim 4) will be in surgery. His/Her abdomen will be cut open and the general surgeon will either repair or remove his/her spleen to control the bleeding. In 2-3 hours, (victim 4) will be in the intensive care unit. 6

7 (victim 4) will leave the hospital in about 3 weeks and undergo extensive physical therapy. Eventually, (victim 4) will recover completely at least physically. Upon s (victim 3) arriving to the ER, his/her breathing will be controlled by a machine. He/She will be administered large amounts of fluids and blood in order to replace that which has been lost. Like (victim 4), (victim 3) will have tubes placed in his/ her stomach, bladder, and abdomen. Shortly after, he/she will be sent into surgery for extensive repair. The general surgeon will cut open his/her abdomen, and repair the tears in his/ her liver and spleen. The orthopedic surgeon will replace his/her left hip and its socket. The plastic surgeon will remove multiple pieces of glass from s (victim 3) face and repair the lacerations. (victim 3) will remain in the intensive care unit on a ventilator for 3 weeks. He/she will be in the hospital for a total of five weeks. Roughly 18 months later, (victim 3) will return for surgery to have his/her facial scars revised. He/She will be plagued with deteriorating left hip function for years, and in 15 years, he/she will be required to replace the hip with an artificial one. (victim 3) will suffer from long term disability from his/her painful left hip. The coroner has arrived, and after determining that (victim 2) is dead and noting the apparent injuries that may have caused the death, will remove the body. I M ONLY SEVENTEEN read at this time Because of the medical expenses necessary to treat s (victim 3) and s (victim 4) injuries, the families filed a lawsuit. s (victim 2) parents insurance company handled the claim, because it was their car. If the policy is 7

8 not sufficient to cover the amount of the claims, s (victim 2) family life savings could be taken, and they could be required to sell their home to pay the claims. s (victim 3) family will be making payments for medical treatments for the rest of his/her life. And though (victim 1) had few expenses, he/she has to live with that image of his/her friend, (victim 2), being thrown from the car, and his/her body laying lifeless. What you have seen this afternoon has been a reenactment of an accident involving four teens, two who were under the influence. This type of situation is not uncommon and has happened right here in this county in recent years. The hope of (school name) SADD is that each one of you will be cautious when making decisions in the future. Have an enjoyable, but more importantly, a safe prom! 8