Franklin County High School (FCHS) recently held a mock prom disaster in the school\u2019s parking lot. The event was scheduled before events such as prom and graduation, to educate students on the realities of consuming alcohol and driving. The event was modeled after the statistic that every 15 minutes someone dies because of an alcohol related accident.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
According to Amy Crabtree, who helped coordinate the event, it was meant to give a real-life view of such a disaster. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe wanted to not only discourage teens [from] drinking and driving after the prom, but any other given day,\u201d she explained. \u201cThere was a four-car accident scene set up in the parking lot, and some of our seniors and Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA) students participated as actors\/actresses. Of the 12 involved, five of them \u2018died\u2019 in the scene. The scene played out from the beginning of the accident to the end, which was Life Force landing on scene and \u2018transporting\u2019 one victim, while juniors and seniors observed.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Crabtree is a registered nurse and a health science instructor for the high school. She has been with the high school since January and became involved with the event to help out. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOne of the areas that I have become involved in is the HOSA club. Rita Sliger is the main HOSA sponsor. In years past, pre-Covid, the mock prom disaster was staged every other year by Ms. Sliger and the HOSA students. After a HOSA meeting one afternoon, Ms. Sliger mentioned possibly starting the mock prom disaster again this prom season. I offered to start making calls for her. I started contacting local emergency personnel, and the rest of that is planning history.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Crabtree said that the first responders and local officials jumped at the chance to help. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cFrom the first phone call, they were all so eager to help,\u201d she explained. \u201cOur [school resource officers] (SROs) recruited two more SROs to help, Matt Walker and Adam Lindsey. Officers Redmon, Tiner, Walker, and Lindsay help us with crowd control during the event.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Crabtree added that Winchester police and fire departments along with Decherd Police Department served as responding\u00a0officers, and the fire department brought the Jaws of Life to extract victims from the cars. Tennessee Highway Patrol officers Corey Stuart and Randy Euler acted as arresting officers for the drunk driver.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c[Accident and emergency] provided us with two ambulance trucks and the following personnel: Ben Smith, [critical care] (CC) Paramedic; Ryan Painter, [advanced emergency medical technician\/licensed practical nurse] (AEMT\/LPN); Ashley Wingard, CC Paramedic; Matt Parker, AEMT; and Cassie Smith, AEMT,\u201d said Crabtree. \u201cThe emergency responders responded to the injuries of the victims, just as they would in real life. Eric Breedlove, flight [registered nurse] (RN) and his crew with Life Force landed the helicopter on scene and was able to load up a victim to transport. These responders were a great asset to us!\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jason Ikard and Ikard Towing also provided the school with the four wrecked cars for the scene. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Crabtree said what she hoped to convey to students was the all too real consequences of such actions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThis is not something that a teenager probably has a really good grip on when it comes to drinking underage,\u201d she explained. \u201cEspecially because they live so much in the moment, and honestly it\u2019s one of the things I love about them. Yes, they see drinking as a way to fit in, let loose, drown problems, etc. But that isn\u2019t the reality. The reality is the consequences. Because the consequences of consuming are heavy. The reality of underage consumption is the 12 victims we had in the mock prom accident scene. The reality of underage consumption is the five \u201cdeaths\u201d we depicted. The reality is the drunk driver that caused the entire scene. Reality is living with knowledge and pain that you took another person\u2019s life because of one choice you made. Reality is a parent grieving for the rest of their lives because their child was taken off this earth too soon.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Reality is that a senior that got airlifted may never fulfill their career dreams or any other goal they had set for themselves, all because of an alcohol related accident that ejected them from a vehicle.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Crabtree said she feels like the event was well received by students, and they were impacted by what they saw. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe majority of the feedback that I have gotten from the students was that they were impacted by it\u201d she said. \u201cThat the scene and how well it played out made them more aware of the danger associated with drinking and driving. Feedback from other faculty members was positive also.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
As a former FCHS graduate herself, Crabtree said she gives all the credit to those who helped and that it felt good to be a part of an event that could help a student make the right decision long after prom night.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI made some phone calls and arranged for a bunch of stuff to happen at about 9:30 a.m. on April 14,\u201d she said. \u201cThe students and emergency personnel made this all happen. But it feels good to be here. I want everyone to see the good things that these kids are doing. I think oftentimes, the 5% of bad overshadows all the good. So it\u2019s my goal to put out all the good stuff these kids do here at this school and in the community.\u201d GN\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Franklin County High School (FCHS) recently held a mock prom disaster in the school\u2019s parking lot. The event was scheduled before events such as prom and graduation, to educate students on the realities of consuming alcohol and driving. The event was modeled after the statistic that every 15 minutes someone dies because of an alcohol […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":68,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12768","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-stories"],"yoast_head":"\n