NRHEG Mock car crash goes off without a hitch

Students from the NRHEG secondary school took some time away from their classes the afternoon of Friday, Sept. 20 to view a “Mock Car Crash” arranged by staff from the New Richland ambulance and fire departments, the Ellendale ambulance crew, the Waseca County Sheriff’s office and Bonnerup Funeral and Cremation Services. 

Students saw two badly damaged vehicles. In and near them were seven “injured” victims–student volunteers with makeup used to simulate injuries. 

The point, according to organizers, was to make clear to the young visitors that poor choices can lead to serious consequences. New Richland Ambulance representative Sarah Sundve said the dramatic representation is meant to provide “high impact with low cost. If it saves one life, that makes all this worth it.” 

Sundve and other members of the organizing team began planning the event in April. Said NRHEG secondary principal Grant Berg, “We’re hoping this will educate the students, this is real, whatever damage we can prevent is good.”

A damaged sedan and minivan were provided for the event by Misgen Auto Parts. The scenario represented is that driver Winter Pederson was not only intoxicated, but texting while behind the wheel when her car collided with the minivan. Pederson’s injured passengers were Hazel and Violett Botten. Passenger Ian Riskedahl was lying “dead” on the vehicle’s hood after having been thrown through the windshield

Driver of the minivan was Orion Rider; in her vehicle were injured passengers Jayden Tonkin, Jade Bauldry, and Laila Schmidt. The teacher who supervised the activity was drama club advisor Holly Pederson. 

As the high school kids began crossing the road to approach the crash scene,  the “victims” were already in position, the idea being that the accident had only just occurred. Actors continued their roles as one by one the police arrived, then the fire department, then the ambulances, then the hearse. The jaws of life were used to take the top off the car to remove the deceased victim, who was loaded into the hearse and driven away. Winter Pederson was given a mock sobriety test, which she failed; she was arrested, handcuffed and put in the back of a police car.

Mark Griffith, director of South-Central Emergency Medical Services, was present making sure his ambulances performed correctly. Said Griffith, “Not only does this give these emergency responders a chance to use tools they might not otherwise be able to use, which equals more training, it also saves lives. With school starting we have a lot of kids on the road and if they’re going to be out, we want them to make smart choices.”

Griffith estimates it has been about seven years since a mock crash was organized in the area. The majority of the emergency responders were volunteers. There had been a drone in the air but it was not a police one, Waseca Sheriff’s sergeant Joshua Langr said, “Usually officers drone an area for evidence, so the judge and lawyers get a better understanding of what happened. If criminal charges come up in court, all of that is used.” Extra credit should go to Winter Pederson, who put up a pretty good fight when she was being “arrested.” The entire event started at 1:30 p.m. and was over by 2:30, when the students returned to their classes.