Mock crash scene hits home
Oxford Area School students got to experience what a real life car crash scene is like last week.
The Road Safety Education Day was held at the school on Wednesday. Senior Constable Ken Terry from Rangiora Police hosted the day which involved students witnessing a mock crash scene.
Terry narrated the event as police, fire and ambulance all attended to the mock crash where students witnessed first hand the drama and tension of an accident.
For one family, the reality of a rural car accident really hit home.
Year 13 student Emma Rutherford was playing the role of the car driver and her dad Mike Rutherford was one of the firefighters working to remove her from the car.
‘‘There was this moment where we looked at each other in the eye ... you could feel the emotion and I actually cried.
‘‘It’s the moment you realise if I really was involved in a crash like this it would actually be my dad turning up to the scene and that was definitely emotional,’’ Rutherford said.
Terry reiterated that message during his narration of the event.
‘‘These people are all volunteers, they’ve been busy working their jobs all day and then they get called out to scenes like this.
‘‘They can be you neighbour, your teacher and even the owner of the local supermarket.’’
Vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death and injury to young people. Terry said in the past 12 months 364 deaths have occurred on New Zealand roads and of those, almost a third are aged under 24 years.
He said the purpose of Road Safety Education Day was to encourage young people to look beyond the choices they made around driving, and the impact those choices can have not only on themselves but on their families, friends and emergency workers.
The day, which is a collaboration between police and Waimakariri District Council, obviously affected the students who watched the crash scene unfold in unwavering silence.
More information about road safety is available on the Waimakariri District Council website.