Estimated read time: 1-2 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
Lori Prichard reportingMay has been the deadliest month for car accidents this year; and for the last five years, those numbers have climbed even higher in June, according to the Utah Department of Transportation.
That's why schools, parents and even some teens themselves have devised a campaign to remind teenagers "Don't Drive Stupid."
If Brady Hansen and his friends weren't believers in driving safely, they are now. Two weeks ago, they were in a car that hit a telephone poll and rolled. "We didn't really walk away ... hobbled away," Brady said. Amazingly, Brady and the four other people in the car lived. Now they have a message.
Nick Clayton, says, "There's nothing you can do nearly as much as wear your seat belt."
Law enforcement, school officials and parents also have a similar message - "Don't Drive Stupid." They're targeting teenagers through graduation parties that are being held at schools across the valley.
Parent Annette Ward said, "It's a safe environment. They all want to hang out and party after graduation."
While the emphasis is on fun, there's also an effort to remind teenagers to be safe. Something Brady and his friends didn't think much about when they were at Alta High School, that is until now.
Nick said, "Even on short rides, this was two blocks away." Two blocks away and the memory of that night remains close.
Chris Bryan was also in the accident. He said, "It's traumatizing. It really is. It's really hard." But looking at pictures of the accident, it could have been much harder.
Brady said, "It saved our lives. He basically told us we would be dead or severely injured."
E-mail: lprichard@ksl.com
