Convincing ‘crash’ at Peters Township High School
Harry Funk / The Almanac
Lexi DiLucia is consoled by Griffin Gillespie, with Mara Rayburg also participating in the mock crash presentation.
Allegheny Health Network's LifeFlight arrives at the scene.
From left are Griffin Gillespie, Lexi DiLucia, Will Delaney and Mara Rayburg.
The photographer's subject is student Anthony Romero.
Jake Deemer anguishes over Maddy Beltz, portraying an accident fatality.
A Peters Township firefighter approaches the scene.
A Peters Township firefighter observes the proceedings.
A Peters Township police officer arrives at the scene.
Emergency personnel arrive at the scene.
A sheet is placed over Maddy Beltz.
Peters Township High School students observe the proceedings.
Emergency responders take a look at Maddy Beltz, as Jake Deemer expresses anguish.
Emily Anderson portrays the sober driver of one of the vehicles involved in the mock crash.
Firefighters work on extrication.
Damaged vehicles helped set the scene for the mock crash.
The performances during Peters Township High School’s annual mock crash were as convincing as ever, even to the participants.
“The kids who are the actors always say, ‘It feels so real.’ They get into the moment, and it feels like it’s actually happened,” principal Lori Pavlik said. “A lot of them have a hard time watching the video after, because they feel like they lived it.”
By Harry Funk
Staff writer
hfunk@thealmanac.net
Peters Township High School hosts its annual mock crash.
The spectacle in the school parking lot – complete with police, fire and emergency service vehicles, highlighted by a helicopter landing and the arrival of a hearse – was preceded and followed by pre- and post-“crash” videos, to set the scene and provide for an aftermath, all in the name of showing students the ramifications of making poor choices.
Twelve students portrayed the drivers and passengers of three vehicles, and as their classmates filed outside after watching the videos in the auditorium, the April 20 performance began with a call to 911 amplified through the PA system. A terrified young lady reported that she and her friends were in an accident, and yes, they’d been drinking.
Harry Funk / The Almanac
Harry Funk / The Almanac
Emergency personnel place a “victim” on a stretcher during a mock crash scene.
“You’re doing a great job,” the dispatcher told her. “I just need you to stay calm. OK?”
But that wasn’t possible, as the scene unraveled into a frantic mass of activity: youngsters discovering their friends were injured or worse, emergency personnel placing victims on stretchers, police interviewing sobbing survivors and firefighters extricating those still trapped inside vehicles.
As the pre-video illustrated, the scenario involved three groups of students whose situations converged in such a tragic manner.
“There was a group at a party that got busted by the cops, so they all just ran into the first car available and sped off,” teacher Krysten Neff, who sponsors the school’s Students Against Destructive Decisions Club, said. “And there was a sober group that went out to celebrate a kid’s birthday, and he was the one who ended up passing away.”
Harry Funk / The Almanac
Harry Funk / The Almanac
Jake Deemer, portraying a drunken driver who was behind the wheel when his girlfriend died, is taken away in handcuffs.
Also involved were a couple: Jake, who was drinking heavily at a party, and Maddy, whose mother texted her to come home right away. Jake drove. Maddy was too worried about her mother to buckle her seat belt.
“I’m literally dead. I’m literally dead,” she told him, and then: “Slow down! Jake!”
The video showed people in the other two cars reacting similarly, and then it was time to go outside.
Returning to the auditorium, the students learned that according to the scenario, Maddy and two young men had died.
“Jake was arrested with a blood-alcohol concentration of .193 and was sentenced to 20 years for vehicular manslaughter,” the video’s narrator explained. “No one has cared to hear from him since.”
Harry Funk / The Almanac
Harry Funk / The Almanac
A police officer questions student, from left, Will Delaney, Lexi DiLucia, Griffin Gillespie and Mara Rayburg.
Including the actors – Maddy Beltz, Jake Deemer, Ben Delaney, Will Delaney, Mara Rayburg, Max Smith, Griffin Gillespie, Lexi DiLucia, Olivia Ziegler, Clare Kovacs, Emily Anderson and Anthony Romero – the task of preparing and presenting the mock crash involved some 50 students.
“This is one of the events that I’m probably most proud of as a principal, because I think students don’t get enough credit for what they know and understand about some of the issues they face,” Pavlik said. “They drive this production.”
She also acknowledged the participation of personnel from Peters Township’s fire and police departments and emergency medical services, Allegheny Health Network’s LifeFlight and Beinhauer Funeral Home.
“This community has been amazing to us,” she said. “Everybody comes together to make sure that all kids know and understand what really happens. It’s a phenomenal event.”
Harry Funk / The Almanac
A Beinhauer Funeral Home hearse arrives at the scene.