BUCYRUS—April is National Distracted Driving Awareness Month.
The Colonel Crawford Chapter of the FFA is focusing on the dangers of distracted driving and happening upon slow-moving vehicles while driving.
The idea to focus on these two driving issues is the brainchild of senior Olivia Chase.
Colonel Crawford Agriculture Education teacher and FFA advisor Josh Scheiber says the mock crash will take place this Thursday at 10 am.
The crash site will be on the drive of the former high school. The setup will begin at 8 am.
Chase began working on the project in the second week of the school year.
According to Scheiber, Chase has organized buttons and bumper stickers to promote safe driving. She has attended several agricultural education speaking engagements to talk about the problem.
“Olivia has been passionate about this cause and I just let her run with it. Honestly, if she would have been a kite, I would have run out of string.” Scheiber said.
The event will feature a realistic reenactment of a car-tractor accident with students trapped inside a car and a badly injured tractor driver.
First responders from the Jefferson Township Fire Department will perform an extraction from the vehicle. The Whetstone
Township Fire Department will be on hand as well.
Students will not only see the danger of distracted driving but will go through a mock sentencing by Crawford County Juvenile Court Judge Pat Murphy.
The goal of the exercise is to let students see the real results of texting while driving, distractions while driving, and the danger of not watching for large farm equipment that may be on the roads of rural Crawford County.
Fatal accidents caused by distracted drivers are on the rise. Deaths in 2021 reached their highest point in nearly two decades, topping 1,300, according to the Ohio State Highway Patrol.
As of April 4, 2023, using or holding a cell phone or electronic device in your hand, lap, or body while driving on Ohio roads is illegal. If an officer sees a violation, they can pull you over.