Smashed car campaign using 'shocking visual' to prevent impaired driving in Sask.
A new Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) campaign aims to prevent getting behind the wheel impaired with smashed cars on the side of high-traffic roads.
The smashed car display was unveiled on Tuesday in Prince Albert. MADD chapters in other cities, such as Regina and Estevan, are also taking part.
The display is currently along Highway 2, just north of the city, but will be moved to two other locations. The last display will end in September.
“It’s a very shocking visual. We consider this like a moving billboard,” said Karen Anthony-Burns from MADD Prince Albert.
Her son, Daniel Carter, was killed after being hit by an impaired driver while crossing the street in 2010.
“We still struggle with the loss 11 years later, and it’s still as impactful as it always was. It’s in our hearts all the time. Our hearts are broken,” she said.
Anthony-Burns said it’s important to plan ahead. If you’re planning on drinking or doing drugs, she said to make sure you have a safe ride home in advance.
“Don’t cause any more tragic consequences,” she said.
“We can choose to do the right thing.”
The campaign is in partnership with SGI, the City of Prince Albert and the police.
Police Chief Jon Bergen said emergency workers get to see the effects of impaired driving first-hand.
“Our emergency responders see this reminder every time they respond to an accident and come across somebody who has been hurt or injured, or even someone who is driving in a way that needs to be corrected through enforcement,” he said.
Like Anthony-Burns, Bergen said driving impaired is a decision putting yourself and others at risk.
“That decision can’t be undone,” said Bergen.
According to SGI, last year, 32 people died as the result of impaired driving in Saskatchewan.
Bergen said Prince Albert police have investigated 36 impaired driving files so far in 2021, and 30 have resulted in charges. In 2020, officers investigated over 100 impaired driving files and 200 Report Impaired Drivers complaints.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Grandparent scam: London, Ont., senior beats fraudsters not once, but twice
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
Deaths of 4 people on Sask. farm confirmed as murder-suicide
The deaths of four people on a farm near the Saskatchewan village of Neudorf have been confirmed a murder-suicide.
George Washington family secrets revealed by DNA from unmarked 19th century graves
Genetic analysis has shed light on a long-standing mystery surrounding the fates of U.S. President George Washington's younger brother Samuel and his kin.
Why some Christians are angry about Trump's 'God Bless the USA' Bible
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is officially selling a copy of the Bible themed to Lee Greenwood’s famous song, 'God Bless the USA.' But the concept of a Bible covered in the American flag has raised concern among religious circles.
Full parole granted to man convicted in notorious 'McDonald's murders' in Cape Breton
The Parole Board of Canada has granted full parole to one of three men convicted in the brutal murders of three McDonald's restaurant workers in Cape Breton more than 30 years ago.
Rainfall warnings of up to 80 mm among weather alerts in effect for 6 provinces
Rainfall warnings of up to 90 millimetres and other alerts have been issued for six Canadian provinces, according to the latest forecasts.
Sunshine list: These were the Ontario public sector's highest earners in 2023
Ontario released its annual sunshine list Thursday afternoon, noting that the largest year-over-year increases were in hospitals, municipalities, and post-secondary sectors.
Bus plunges off a bridge in South Africa, killing 45 people. An 8-year-old child is only survivor
A bus carrying worshippers headed to an Easter festival plunged off a bridge on a mountain pass and burst into flames in South Africa on Thursday, killing at least 45 people, authorities said.
Calgary bridges remain closed due to ongoing police incident
Calgary police have shut down a number of bridges into and out of the downtown core as officers deal with a distraught individual.