Save Lives

There is a quote by an unknown author that says, “Drinking and Driving: the disease that makes you too selfish to see the havoc that you created or care about the people whose lives you shattered.”  I remember this quote whenever I am faced with remembering the day, I saw a teenager who died from drinking and driving. The emergency room was busy, packed with many sick, bleeding, dying, young, old, sad, and happy people.  From what I could remember it smelled like rubber gloves and alcohol.  The aura that filled the halls was sometimes hopeful and sometimes sorrowful, yet I still felt as an Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) waiting in the emergency room (ER)–the terrifying feeling that drinking and driving can touch anyone, anywhere, at any time. 

On April 28, 2018, I was only 17 years old and a new EMT at the local fire department. We were called to a fatal car crash with several vehicles. One young man around my age was behind the wheel of a motor vehicle that was smashed down an embankment. We had to cut the vehicle open to getting him out of the car before the car exploded into flames. The scene was like being pulled into the climax of a movie. He was transported to the nearest hospital where we rolled him down a long hall to the examining room with emergency medical technicians, nurses, and doctors trying to save his life, but his body forgot to breathe and he was gone just like that.  The doctor came out to explain the situation and his whole family began to cry, and my insides began to ache from the loss.  This was the most heart-wrenching sight that made my whole-body tremble to the point I felt like I was going to faint.  Theodore Roosevelt said, “Believe you can and you’re halfway there”, but I guess this teen did not believe anymore, so he took his last breath just like so many others dying from drinking and driving. 

            The Center for Disease Control and Prevention known as the CDC stated that an estimated 36,835 fatalities in motor vehicle traffic deaths in the United States (U.S.) were reported in 2018. “About ¼ of fatal teen car accidents involve underage drinking and driving” (MADD). Driving fatalities are continuing to climb at an alarming rate—38.824 deaths were reported in 2020 and drinking and driving have driven the fatalities deaths.

This terrible experience in the emergency room sparked my interest to bring awareness to others about how many people are dying from drinking and driving, drug/substance use, inexperience, nighttime and weekend driving, not using seat belts, distracted driving, and speeding to name a few. Although my reflection of my terrifying experience in the ER did not provide an immediate explanation of the world on reducing the number of deaths related to driving, my war on reducing the number of deaths related to drinking and driving underage was sparked and fueled by a campaign to educate and bring more awareness to end all driving fatalities for teens and young adults.

Later on, I turned my attention toward campaigning statewide to prevent drinking and driving, drug/substance use, inexperience, nighttime and weekend driving, not using seat belts, distracted driving, and speeding to raise awareness about the need to end the lack of training given to teens and young adults before they start driving. Is there a solution? Yes, education is the key and bringing more awareness to the community, federal, state, and local officials to bring awareness on social platforms, such as video streaming, and web pages to include training and resources to reduce the number of deaths related to driving. In addition, requiring the states to have educational updates for drivers before they can renew their licenses. Training each driver about ensuring safety for all drivers, road-rage incidents, defensive driving, and real-life situations. In addition, we need to stress the importance of wearing a seat belt to reduce death in motor vehicle accidents. We also need to enforce the minimum legal drinking age and zero tolerance for driving under the influence of alcohol and drugs to prevent drinking and driving.

Finally, driving is a complex skill, one that everyone must practice reducing the number of related deaths due to driving. The lack of experience and risk-taking behaviors can increase the deaths related to driving. In the end, we all need to take the responsibility to make sure the laws are being enforced and followed to save lives.