Emergencies — and how to better deal with them in the future — will dominate the Association of Manitoba Municipalities meeting later this month.
Manitoba stories
Did you know that someone is killed every half-hour in an alcohol-related crash? Statistics show that 85 people lost their lives and 2,192 were injured in 2006 as a result of alcohol-related crashes. Research shows as the number of DUI arrests increase, the number of alcohol-related crashes and fatalities decrease. Our local law enforcement plays a tremendous role in driving these numbers down. We would like you to join us as we give commendation to the men and women of Orange County who have dedicated themselves to saving lives and preventing injuries.
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Juan Molina campaigns for MADD.
Each year, an estimated 17,000 people across the nation are killed in alcohol-related driving crashes.
Juan Molina knows the numbers well. His son was one of them.
Ten years ago, Molina’s 25-year-old son Michael was hit by a drunken driver and stayed in a coma for 30 days before passing away. Since that time, the Portland father has campaigned against drinking and driving. He currently acts as a spokesman for Mothers Against Drunk Driving, based in Wilsonville.
“I just don’t want to see another mom or dad suffer the way I have suffered,” he said. “Ten years ago, I got that phone call, the one that every parent dreads. The one thing I can remember is the extreme physical pain I felt.”
Molina arrived at the hospital to find his son covered in cuts and bruises, with a tube sticking out of his chest, and screws in his knees.
“This was completely and utterly preventable,” he said.
The Oregon MADD chapter recently gathered outside Les Schwab on a foggy Saturday morning to announce its biggest public awareness campaign, “Tie One On for Safety.” MADD urges visitors to tie their pink ribbon on a vehicle, reminding others not to drink and drive. Last year, they passed out 6 million ribbons.
“Too many people have celebrated without their loved ones because of drunk driving,” said volunteer Pauline Newman.
Jill, of Donald, took ribbons by the handful. She’s a volunteer for MADD who wants to hand out the ribbons at work.
“It’s important not to drink and drive,” she said. “It’s a safety issue for all of us.”
During her lifetime, Jill has had two close friends affected by drunken driving. One friend suffered a traumatic brain injury after being hit in a drunken driving accident. Another friend was killed, and two weeks later his wife killed herself.
“It still has an effect on me,” she said. “There are a lot of people with immediate family who have been affected, and they don’t recover.”
Joan Miller, who spoke during the Nov. 22 ceremony, told the audience she had been involved in a three-car crash caused by a noncommissioned officer in Utah who had been overserved yet allowed to leave his military base. Her husband John suffered a punctured lung and two broken legs. Joan’s skulls was crushed into 24 pieces and doctors believed she would remain in a persistent vegetative state even if she survived.
“She’s always had the energy, but she needed a passion,” said husband John.
The Millers started a brain injury support group called BIRRDsong. They also filed a case against the federal government, but lost in the Utah Supreme Court. They wanted the military to take responsibility for how much alcohol it served. The Millers are still paying for medical costs incurred from the accident, and Joan said her own mother had to pay to have Joan transferred from Utah to Oregon.
“Now we can make a change,” said Joan. “In Utah, they are still sending out loaded missiles. We are contacting everybody, and attempting to create a situation where the federal government is held accountable for its actions.”
Clackamas County Sheriff’s Lt. Nick Watt, chief of the Wilsonville police department, said the sheriff’s office has “a zero tolerance for drunk driving.”
Nationally, more than 1,000 people are killed between Thanksgiving and New Year’s in alcohol-related crashes. Statistics from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration show that the fatality rate is decreasing, except in the case of motorcycle riders, which had a 10 percent increase.
