Staff writer
More than 26 public service individuals responded to a mock car crash Friday at Centre High School. They included personnel from Marion County Sheriff’s Department, Kansas Highway Patrol, fire departments at Lincolnville and Lost Springs, Marion County Emergency Medical Services, Zeiner Funeral Home in Marion, and LifeWatch.
The staging provided an opportunity for training personnel in the National Incident Managing System begun in 2004. The system provides standardized organization and operational procedures.
The event also provided a stark reminder to students and adults alike to practice safe driving.
At least five students were involved in the mock two-vehicle accident that left one dead and four injured. One driver, enacted by Quentin Wacker, was killed when he was thrown through the front windshield, landing face down on the hood. The other driver, enacted by Leann Pankratz, received minor injuries. She was tested and charged with DUI, and led away in handcuffs.
The passengers, enacted by Carlye Simons, Shelby Deines, and Sheila Makovec, were removed from the vehicles and treated by EMS personnel. Two were sent to area hospitals by ambulance, and one was sent on a LifeWatch helicopter.
Afterward, Kansas Highway Patrolman Scott Proffitt spoke to the students in assembly.
“Why did we do this today?” he asked students. “It’s not because we want to scare you. It’s because we care.”
He said young people often feel that cops are “out to get them,” but it isn’t so.
“I don’t target kids,” Proffitt said. “I target bad driving. I want you to drive safely. I don’t want your parents to experience that dreaded knock on the door.”
He said he issues a lot of warnings and not many tickets, but is not hesitant to charge someone for criminal actions or actions that hurt themselves and others.
“I’m generating voluntary compliance,” Proffitt said.
“You are responsible for the occupants in your car,” he added. “How you drive isn’t just affecting you. It’s affecting others also.”
He admonished drivers to wear seatbelts, be cautious at stop signs and intersections, and not send text messages on cell phones.
Gary Schneider of Herington, an educator in Operation Lifesaver, had on display a vehicle that was involved in a car-train accident. He later presented facts and warnings about the dangers.
“For your safety, as well as the railroad employees that operate the trains, please be alert and obey any warning signs at railroad crossings and stay clear of any railroad rights-of-way you encounter,” he said.
A real-life tragedy
Ken and Carol Kejr (pronounced “care”) of Lindsborg painfully told the assembly about the January 2008 death of their college-age daughter, Joselyn, in a head-on collision on U.S.-50 west of Emporia.
With a quivering voice, Carol told about the Sunday afternoon when Joselyn left home to go back to college. The doorbell rang at 6:15 p.m., with a highway patrolman bringing news that she was dead. She was killed in a head-on collision while trying to pass a vehicle on a slight curve in the road.
“I cried and cried and cried,” Carol said. “I cried so hard.”
Ken, a trucker, was 10 hours away. Carol called to tell him what had happened but was crying so hard, her daughter had to break the news. He came home as soon as possible.
The next few days were like a fog. The couple’s pastor and his wife and other friends helped them, tending to details that needed to be done.
They have four other children, but their daughter’s death has left a void in their lives that never can be filled.
“Make good decisions,” Carol told the assembly. “Wear seatbelts, be aware of who is around you and the flow of traffic, and please don’t drink and drive.”