Fire, Police and EMS Show Students the Dangers of Drinking and Driving Through Mock DUI Demonstration

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With Prom Season underway, first responders across the United States are stressing the importance of not drinking and driving to students through mock DUI demonstrations. In these recreations of alcohol-related motor vehicle accidents, firefighters, police officers, EMS personnel, towing companies, mortuaries, coroner's offices, and make-up artists, along with student and parent volunteers from high schools, show kids the fatal and tragic effects of drinking and driving.

One organization that has been active for over a decade in educating high school Juniors and Seniors about this is Friends Against Drunk Driving (FADD), a coalition of fire departments, police departments, ambulance services, the county coroner's office, hospitals, towing companies, and businesses in Orange County, California. Founded by Orange County Fire Authority Paramedic Captain Steve Concialdi in 1989, FADD has staged 66 mock DUI's for high school students since their first one in 1991. These exercises cost the agencies involved $15,000 each time they do it, but Concialdi, a 20 year fire department veteran, says that it is well worth it, as years later he has former students come back to him expressing how much it affected them.

In the mock DUI, a complete accident scenario is reenacted beginning with a drunken teenager's choice to drive and ending with the arrest of the driver and his dead passengers being taken away in body bags. Students are dressed up as if they are going to the prom, and they are made up by local make-up artists to portray critically injured and dead MVA victims. According to Orange County Fire Authority Battalion Chief Pokey Sanchez, twenty-two firefighters participate with a paramedic engine, truck company, two ambulances, a battalion chief and additional paramedics. In the case of a real accident, an additional truck company and medic units would be called and possibly a Heavy Rescue or Urban Search and Rescue Company depending on the severity. Firefighters realistically perform extrications of the victims, while paramedics treat the severely injured students and the coroner's office and local mortuary tend to the "dead". Police officers and towing companies also participate.

Captain Concialdi says of the recreation, "These are realistic accidents that change the lives of everybody. We are showing them reality. We bring in a mom halfway into the program. She's distraught and every student can relate to if their mom showed up on an accident like that."

Battalion Chief Sanchez says of his department's commitment to participating in FADD, "It's one of the most beneficial programs I think we have that outreaches to the adolescents that we have that are currently obtaining their Driver's Licenses and have a true understanding of what can occur if you do decide to drink and drive."

Mission Viejo High School students, Noelle Medina and Holly Starr, who participated in one of 2009's mock DUI demonstrations, said that they felt that the program hit home for many students and that they personally would never drink and drive after being a part of this. According to Orange County Fire Authority Battalion 5 Chaplain, Jeff Hetschel, the program has been very effective, as the number of teenage drinking and driving accidents has decreased over the years.