A Storm drops in on students

A compact blue car lay on the ground a crumpled mess, after falling 25 metres from a crane at an Oliver school on Friday.

Photo: Deborah Pfeiffer

Crews move in after the drop.

The car drop was actually a lesson in the risks of distracted and impaired driving, as well as other valuable messages, held at Sen Pok Chin school.

"We are trying to do this in an exciting way, rather than scare the kids," said Matthew Baran, the Osoyoos Indian Band youth programming coordinator. "And we are looking at three main messages."

In addition to the dangers of drunk driving, a basic education on what police, fire and ambulance do in such situations and the fact that these are exciting jobs for young people to get involved with.

In a brief assembly prior to the dramatic drop, RCMP members gave students statistics on the number of distracted driving incidents and fatalities. They further provided information on the heavy fines people can face for both types of driving.

Fire Chief Dan Skaros with the Oliver Volunteer Fire Department urged students to always wear seat belts and to not drink and drive.

Osoyoos Indian Band Chief Clarence Louie thanked everyone involved and said he hopes the memory of this stays with everybody.

"There are many ways of teaching and this is one of them," he said.

Students then gathered outside for the drop of the donated 1992 Geo Storm.

As a siren sounded, the car with a dummy at the wheel fell through the air, before crashing. Firefighters, RCMP and ambulance crews then responded to the scene; while giving students advice on what they were doing and why.

Students who were restless during the assembly, were quiet and somber as they watched the rescuers at work.

Carolyn Johnson, 10, said it is something she won't soon forget.

"I learned how they get people out of cars after accidents and not to drink and drive," she said.