TAYLOR, Mich. (WXYZ) — About 300 seniors at Taylor High School watched a realistic distracted driving demonstration on Monday, complete with blaring sirens, a full-scale rescue, and a staged transfer to a hearse.
Watch Carli Petrus's video report:
The demonstration aimed to show how a split-second decision behind the wheel can change everything. According to the school resource officer, students actually requested the demonstration.
Senior Marcus Armstrong said the visuals left a lasting impression on him.
"I don’t even want to be in the car with my phone now you know, like just seeing this," Armstrong said.
"It’s hard to do anything but now drive. I think everyone here is going to be a little more cautious going forward," Armstrong said.
Organizer and teacher’s aide Lisa McParland said that is exactly the goal.
"We want to make sure Taylor is safe out there and our kids are safe as well," McParland said.
She noted the timing of the event is no accident, with senior prom just weeks away.
"Prom is coming up on May 7th so, we want to make sure that we hit what’s going to hurt the most and that is our senior class, to let them know that it is very dangerous to be distracted or texting while driving," McParland said.
Taylor Police played a major role in coordinating the demonstration, with Chief John Blair watching from the crowd of students.
"You know when the hearse pulled up and the funeral home, boy did that have an impact on those kids. You kind of heard a gasp and I think that really drove the message home that hey, this could be me," Blair said.
Blair said distracted driving is something officers are seeing every day.
"I mean it’s an epidemic, not only with this little event with the kids, everybody knows there’s over 3,000 fatalities in a year from distracted driving, that’s just what is reported," Blair said.
See video from inside the police cruiser at the moment of impact:
Just months ago, one of Taylor's own police officers was hit by a distracted driver.
"She admitted that she was distracted on her phone, and next thing you know, we have an officer that escaped injury luckily," Blair said.
The demonstration served as a stark reminder that not everyone is that lucky.
"It’s just horrific, it’s definitely a tragedy," Armstrong said.
"All I can say, you know, you never want to be on your phone, you never want to be distracted in any type of way. You always want to be focused while driving," Armstrong said.
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