Horror Crash Becomes Safety Lesson

A speeding car spins out, hits an oncoming vehicle, leaves the road and lands upside down in the harbour. Two young passengers are killed and three other people in the oncoming car are seriously injured.

The crash at Pauatahanui, near Wellington, in 2009 was devastating for the families involved. It has inspired a road safety initiative called The Ripple Effect, aimed at helping young drivers and passengers to stay safe. Making good choices in life is the theme of a 20-minute DVD based on a crash. That presentation is followed by the father of one of the young men who died speaking about the crash and life afterwards for family and friends.

The resource was prepared with funding from Porirua City Council, and has been taken to almost every school in Tasman and Nelson in conjunction with the councils and ACC. Krista Hobday, Road Safety Coordinator at Tasman District Council, says The Ripple Effect is aimed at helping young people to make good choices about a range of social issues, not just in driving, and speaking out if they feel unsafe or uncomfortable in any situation.

"There is a lot to be gained in speaking out if you think your mates are travelling too fast or driving in an unsafe fashion,” she says. “Getting into a car with your mates to go for a night out on the town is not necessarily bad if you do the planning – deciding who is the sober driver, how you are getting home, and looking out for each other. Getting into a car and doing 140 km/h is just not cool. It is all about making good decisions, and understanding the consequences of those decisions."

The Ripple Effect charts the impact that a single event can have across friends, families and the community. “So many people were affected by that horrendous crash," says Krista. "We need to educate our young drivers to make sure these crashes do not occur, because this truly was a crash which didn't need to happen.”

The target age group is 14- to 18-year-olds. For more information, go to  www.therippleeffect.org.nz