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OREM — A group headed to Orem High School for a memorable night at their homecoming dance this past weekend never made it and instead learned a lesson about why buckling up is so important.
Orem High student Brooklyn Hale said he and his group of friends were getting in a car, excited to go to the dance and have fun. But on their way to the event from a pre-dance dinner, the car the six teens were in rolled after the driver was going fast on the Alpine Loop Scenic Highway.
“I remember hearing screeches and hearing a big crash,” Hale said.
The truck they were in rolled over and landed in the river.
“I was hanging upside down in my seat because I had my seat belt on,” Hale said. “I took my seat belt off and hit the roof.”
Hale and his close friends sitting next him all said their seat belt saved their lives Saturday night.
“If I wouldn’t have had a seat belt on, I would have went through the windshield,” he said.
All of them walked away with minor injuries and a lesson that meant much more to them than missing their high school dance.
“Put your seat belt on right as you get in the car before you turn it on,” Hale said.
Utah Highway Patrol troopers said speed played a factor in the crash. They want to remind anyone on the roads not only to wear their seat belts but always drive the speed limit.
