When I was six
years old, my step father got into a car crash. Driving to the
hospital, I had no idea why mother was banging on the dashboard of
our truck and crying frantically; I sat in silence. Once we arrived,
both of us rushed in. I don’t remember much of the experience but I
will never be able to pry the image of Aurthur on a stretcher out of
my mind. It seemed as if his whole body was a huge bruise… there
were also white casts on his neck, legs and even his torso. I didn’t
know they even made casts for torsos. His eyes were swollen shut, I
wasn't sure if he was going to make it. Fortunately enough, he did.
My family is very lucky as, not all families get to bring their loved
ones home after this kind of accident caused by reckless driving. It
wasn't even my step father who was on his phone, it was the person
that hit him.
A lot of times,
people think that things like this just could not happen to them.
They’re wrong. Statistics show that ninety people die in car
accidents every day. There are six million car accidents in a year,
three million injured and two million suffer permanent injuries. A
lot of these fatalities are caused by alcohol, reckless driving and
distracted driving (texting, eating, etc). Car fatalities are the
leading cause of accident deaths in teenagers. Leading cause! These
are several concrete reasons why driving education is so important.
This is a worldwide problem. These people are siblings, mothers and
fathers, daughters and sons. Accidents can most definitely be
prevented. Once an individual or a family realizes that these things
DO and CAN happen to them, it will be too late.
Simple precautions
can be taken to prevent vehicle fatalities: being constantly aware of
one’s surroundings by watching and listening, keep hands on the
wheel and eyes on the road, stay the speed limit, be more cautious
for children and reckless drivers, keep two car distance from car in
front (avoid tailgating), be aware of blindspots and always keep the
vehicle in good condition (change oil regularly, watch tire pressure,
etc). If you know you are going to be driving in the near future,
completely avoid alcohol or any drugs! Not only will you be putting
yourself at risk, you are also risking the lives of people in the car
with you along with those on the road. Having a platform to be taught
the importance of safe driving is imperative. Having to go through
drivers ed, being taught what can happen and the measures to
prevent such accidents is also very important. Let's make this world
a safer place, begin by keeping eyes on the road and being aware.
Keep families along with yourself safe from tragedy.