wow....i am speechless still...in a state of shock

[MedicAsh]

Working as an EMT you see lots of things. Yesterday was one of the hardest things i had to deal with. 5 High school students were driving to school and something happened. They hit a concrete barrier to a light pole and all of them are in critical condition and one passed away last night. There was no drugs or alcohol. They did not try to stop at all. NONE WERE WEARING SEATBELTS.! Some people think that you only need seatbelts while on the highway or interstate. That is not true!!!! All of these kids were injured badly and one is dead. Doctors said that the one kid would still be alive today if he was wearing a seatbelt. The others would have been less injured.

Our community is deeply saddened today. Many people are looking for answers. No one knows what happened. The detectives don't even know. Speed may have been a factor but they are still trying to figure it all out.

This has caused me to start a new platform. WEARING SEATBELTS AT ALL TIMES WHILE IN A CAR!!!! Even a low speed crash can be fatal. Most accidents are within 5 miles from home. PLEASE WEAR YOUR SEATBELTS AT ALL TIMES!!! Encourage everyone you know to wear them. It may save your life!!

[Dustdevil]

Too shocked to even choose an appropriate subject title, eh?

That's pretty bad!

[JPINFV]

Umm, isn't there already state laws requiring people to wear seatbelts? Something just doesn't feel right when I'm in a car or the front of an ambulance without a seatbelt on. I'm trying to get to be that way in the back of the ambulance too.

[baseflight]

Besides the seat belts....inexperienced teenage drivers are easily distracted, especially among a group of friends. Isn't there a state that restricts teen drivers from having other adolescent passengers in their vehicle?

[JPINFV]

California for the first year. No one else in the car unless someone over 25 is also in the car. Family and emergencies are exempted from the law.

[primemedic01]

I'm at the point now where I'll think about it, reach back to put it on, and I've already strapped it across my chest. Putting it on has just become completely involuntary and mindless for me, I don't even realize that it happens. That's why it blows my mind when people die because they weren't wearing it. I mean honestly, it takes absolutely 0% effort to put your hand up, grasp, pull down, and push in. And come on now, don't sit there and tell me you don't want to wear it because it's not comfortable. Millions of people can wear them and not complain. I don't know, I guess I just don't understand some people sometimes.

Besides the seat belts....inexperienced teenage drivers are easily distracted, especially among a group of friends. Isn't there a state that restricts teen drivers from having other adolescent passengers in their vehicle?

In NH they started a new thing the year after I got my license. When I got mine, you couldn't drive without a parent or someone over 25 the first 90 days after you got your license. Then after that first 90 days there were no rules, just couldn't drive between 1am and 5 am until you were 18. This was pretty stupid because most kids would get there license, not drive for 90 days because they didn't want to look like idiots driving with there parents, and then get behind the wheel with all their friends. You could imagine how well this DIDN'T work.

Now, there's still a probationary period, but it's a little different. When you get your license you don't have to drive with a parent, but you can't drive with more than 1 person that isn't related to you. So you can only have 1 friend in the car with you. Now, if you are best friends with all your cousins then you've found a loop hole, because as long as they are related to you, you can have as many people as the car will permit. I'm not absolutely positive on what the timeframe for this is, but I think it is longer than the 90 days.

[Defiant1]

when will teens learn that WE ARE NOT INVINCIBLE? it's a sad truth, I learned this when my classmate died. How many more must die before this is changed? I mean come on, Wisconsin will just slap ya on the wrist for not wearing your seat belt ($10 fine, but as far as I know it isn't a moving violation) it may have changed, but I don't recall hearing anything. We can only hope that people will wise up about it.

[primemedic01]

when will teens learn that WE ARE NOT INVINCIBLE?

I wouldn't hold your breath on this. As long as there are teenagers there wil be ignorance. And unfortunately you were lucky that you learned from a classmate dying, because death of a friend doesn't always make kids learn, and nor does cheating death. Almost a year ago one of my little sisters best friends died 2 months into their senior year. He was the unrestrained passenger of a mid sized sedan, that struck a very large oak tree head on, no skid marks, no evidence of an attempt to miss it. Investigators estimated a speed of approx 90MPH. Both the driver and passenger were extremely intoxicated. As the driver was pulled from the vehicle (extrication for both occupants was upwards to an hour due to the extreme damage to the car) he was still clutching a bud light can in his hand.

Both were transported by ground to the area level 2 trauma center, approx 10-13 minutes away in Manchester (Medflight was grounded due to weather conditions). The driver died approx 4 hrs after the crash in the OR from significant chest, abdominal and pelvic injuries. The passenger was later transported to Catholic Medical Center, also in Manchester, and then later airlifted to Dartmouth Hitchcock in Lebanon. He died there about 3-4 days later due to a torn aorta. He was basically a vegetable and his parents had to make that difficult decision to pull the plug. He had a twin brother and an older sister.

Basically what I'm really getting at, is that one of their friends had the nerve to place an empty bud light can next to the tree with all the other items that students placed there. Like they thought it was honoring them or something. Because my sister had been such good friends with the passenger, I had gotten to know him pretty well too So when I went to the tree to lay some flowers, and saw the beer can I became absolutely furious. I crushed it up and threw it in the woods.

Then, another story bridging from this. During the funeral for the passenger, one of their friends was non stop talking about how he was never going to drive drunk again, never going to get f ucked up again, etc etc etc. Well about 2 months after this accident, this kid got piss drunk and jumped in his car because he was pissed at his friends. He got about a half mile down the road, hit a telephone pole head on, and got partially ejected from the drivers side window. His friends had started to follow him (the argument was because the friends wouldn't let him get in his car, and they tried to take his keys), and found him hanging out the window seizuring (so they say, he wasn't seizuring when the first medic unit arrived). He was airlifted from the scene to Boston, and spent 2 months in the ICU for a head injury. To this day this kid still goes out and gets fcuked up.

So like I said, you were lucky, because some kids don't even smarten up when they cheat death.

RIP Steven Hodgeman 2/2/88-11/7/05

[medic001918]

Working as an EMT you see lots of things. Yesterday was one of the hardest things i had to deal with. 5 High school students were driving to school and something happened. They hit a concrete barrier to a light pole and all of them are in critical condition and one passed away last night. There was no drugs or alcohol. They did not try to stop at all. NONE WERE WEARING SEATBELTS.! Some people think that you only need seatbelts while on the highway or interstate. That is not true!!!! All of these kids were injured badly and one is dead. Doctors said that the one kid would still be alive today if he was wearing a seatbelt. The others would have been less injured.

Our community is deeply saddened today. Many people are looking for answers. No one knows what happened. The detectives don't even know. Speed may have been a factor but they are still trying to figure it all out.

This has caused me to start a new platform. WEARING SEATBELTS AT ALL TIMES WHILE IN A CAR!!!! Even a low speed crash can be fatal. Most accidents are within 5 miles from home. PLEASE WEAR YOUR SEATBELTS AT ALL TIMES!!! Encourage everyone you know to wear them. It may save your life!!

As unfortunate as the accident was, it does happen and will continue to happen for as long as we drive on roads. It just as easily could have been a family or any other group in the car for that matter. The concept of wearing seatbelts at all times is not a new platform by any means. Many states currently have seatbelt laws that require them to be worn, but like any other law you can't enforce it to 100% effeciency. There will be people who don't want to wear them and will not wear them. It's just the nature of being human. They have the freedom to make their own decisions.

And Connecticut is also among the states that has a law restricting who can be in the car after you first obtain your licesne. I don't know the details of this law, but I know it is one that has evolved over the past 10 years or so.

Good for you for wanting to take a stand on an issue and encouraging people to wear seatbelts though.

Shane

NREMT-P

[kyle308]

Besides the seat belts....inexperienced teenage drivers are easily distracted, especially among a group of friends. Isn't there a state that restricts teen drivers from having other adolescent passengers in their vehicle?

in Indiana you can have anyone in your car after you have had your license for a 90 day probationary period.