‘Really drives it home’: Mock crash shows B.C. students the consequences of dangerous driving

North Vancouver students took in a simulation of a car crash involving a drunk driver that’s designed to be so realistic it may save lives.

A life-like crash simulation at Carson Graham Secondary in North Vancouver on Tuesday gave students a graphic look at the consequences of impaired and dangerous driving.

The exercise featured student actors portraying victims in a staged crash, while actual first responders carried out emergency procedures.

“They’re doing exactly what they would do in the field in a real scenario,” said Brian Twaites with B.C. Emergency Health Services.

Organizers say the event is designed to show teens the lasting impact of risky driving, including speeding, distraction, and alcohol use.

“It gets engraved in their minds. It really drives home just what can happen,” said ICBC spokesperson Greg Harper.

In B.C., an average of 27 young people annually are killed in crashes each year.

Emergency responders also treat roughly 6,000 youths who require medical care.

In the second part of the demonstration, students also watched a simulation inside Lions Gate Hospital.

“The severity of the injuries is really intense, and that’s really revealed in the hospital setting,” said emergency room nurse Kayla Brolly.

The patients were actors or mannequins, while real doctors and nurses carried out every step of care as if it were an actual emergency.

Dr. Alex Choy with Vancouver Coastal Health said exposing students to those kinds of realistic scenarios can help reinforce the consequences of impaired driving.

“I think it’s really important that kids and youth really have access to what would happen to you in that situation, because it is so serious,” she said.