Smart, Safe, Sober
Mock Crash makes its biannual impact on students leading up to Prom
Every day, about 34 people in the United States die in drunk-driving related crashes — that’s one person every 42 minutes. In 2023, 12,429 people died in alcohol-impaired driving traffic deaths, according to www.nhsta.gov. All these deaths were preventable.
As part of BHS’s 2025 AAA PROMise, students from the theater department conducted a Mock Crash on Tuesday, April 29th, to raise awareness and help teach peers about the effects of impaired driving.
The event started in the second hour when 11th and 12th graders walked out to the west parking lot with the horrific crash scene waiting to be unveiled. The crash showed a realistic outcome of what could happen when driving impaired.
Upon getting out of the car to the horrifying scene, students [Margot Miller ‘27, Isaac Ryder ‘27, Emily DeWolfe ‘26, Dalinda Gravley ‘26, Ben Krinke ‘25, and Jacob Bull ‘25] called the first responders and found their friend, Lucas Louwagie ‘26, thrown through the windshield, lying on the hood of the car, lifeless and still.
“I thought this role would be an easy one, I just sit there and just lie dead for a while, but when I got out there I realized I actually have to be dead. I tried to my breath and take shallow breaths, to not move as much. I sat with my thumbs in my hands so I wouldn’t twitch because of how cold it was,” Louwagie said. “They had a sign with my obituary on it, and people thought I was actually dead because no one knew anything about it they just saw the sign posted. It was definitely interesting to be dead for a day.”
In worry about the rest of the incident, Miller and Ryder approached the impacted young family whose son, Kyler Jaunich ‘27, was being given life-saving first aid measures before being rushed off in an ambulance.
One of the backseat passengers, Kaylee Anderson ‘27, was found relatively unscathed and continued to mourn the loss of her close friends. Avery Russek ‘26, the other backseat passenger, was found in the vehicle, unable to move from the impact of the crash.
“It [the Mock Crash] was more realistic than I thought it was gonna be. Seeing all my friends, coming up, and crying and looking at me was surreal, and the weather made it even more like emotional. I was actually crying in the back seat,” Russek said. “It was very scary, but I think it was a good experience, because it really put into perspective, that type of situation, without all of the pain and real injuries.”
Vincent Johnson ‘26, who portrayed the impaired driver, was left speechless and in shambles, stunned by the immediate aftermath of his poor choices.
During the event, the people who portrayed the realistic crash show true portrayals of anger, grief, shock, and disbelief. The effects of driving while under the influence of alcohol led loved ones to be airlifted by a helicopter, taken by an ambulance, sent to the police station, and removed from the scene in a hearse.
When the simulation was over, students were brought into the PAC to watch what happened to the impaired driver post-crash, including legal and personal repercussions. As the film came to an end guest speaker–and second grade teacher at Parkside Elementary–Pamela Benson, shared her story of how she lost the life of her husband to an impaired driver.
“It’s important to spread awareness about drinking and driving and not to do it, because it can effect not only you, but people around you and your loved ones,” Johnson said. “Nobody deserves to die from drunk drivers.”
Though the crash was a simulation brought to life with the support of actors, law enforcement, and administrators, it is still a real issue that many face and are forced to live with. The Mock Crash is a way to show students at BHS the outcome of impaired driving, build awareness, and help eliminate preventable death, injury, and tragedy
