Mahanoy Area mock DUI shows students dangers of drunk driving
KAYLEE LINDENMUTH / SENTINEL PHOTO - Mahanoy City Fire Department personnel remove the roof of a Ford Explorer during a mock-DUI demonstration at the Mahanoy Area High School on May 15, 2019.
By Kaylee Lindenmuth
MAHANOY TOWNSHIP – Mahanoy Area students received a sobering reminder of what could happen should they drive drunk or otherwise impaired or distracted, days before the school’s prom night and weeks before graduation.
The scenario took place outside the Mahanoy Area High School, where two wrecked cars, donated by Hope’s Towing of Tamaqua, were set up to simulate a crash. Despite being a dramatization, the scenario remained true-to-life.
Students from grades seven through 12 gathered on the lawn of the West End Fire Company for the demonstration, which simulated an actual response from fire crews, from the 911 call to the first dispatch of emergency crews.
Mahanoy City and Township police arrived with lights and sirens activated, along with Mahanoy City Fire Chief Dan Markiewicz, who confirmed via radio a two vehicle crash with entrapment. Then, Mahanoy City fire personnel from the Humane and West End companies, along with Mahanoy City EMS, arrived in the same fashion, and began work as if it were a real crash.
One student, senior Ashley Walker, who portrayed the drunk driver behind the wheel of a Ford Explorer, was taken into custody by Corporal Charles Kovalewski, borough police, and Chief Brandon Alexander, township police.
Humane personnel readied hose lines while West End crews shored up the two cars before attempting to extricate the other students.
One student, senior Samuel Sinopoli, portrayed a passenger in the Chevy Cobalt, which was struck by the Explorer, who passed away.
Three other students portrayed victims in the crash — seniors Armelle Metellus, Leslie Gonzalez, and Dario Vivar. Each was extricated from their respective vehicle and taken to the awaiting Mahanoy City Ambulance.
Sinopoli’s character was removed from the Cobalt and laid down next to the vehicle, covered by a white sheet until Schuylkill County Deputy Coroner David Truskowsky’s arrival. Mahanoy Area staff member Paula Onisick portrayed Sinopoli’s mother, distraught and consoled by Kovalewski. When Truskowsky arrived and pronounced Sinopoli’s character dea
Truskowsky, a Mahanoy City native, helped organize the demonstration, the fourth in the county he’s been involved in. He spoke to the students afterward, urging them to “make the right choice.”
“Kids these days are learning from these types of events and they’re making the right choices,” said Truskowsky. “However, there’s other things that are killing young people like you guys. Always make the right choice. If you’re going to do something, anything that you don’t want your mom or dad to see, that should be your gold standard: don’t do it. That’ll keep you out of trouble.”
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