The title of this post is not mine. It’s from a famous Anti Drunk Driver Campaign in America.
The picture of the girl is very important in the campaign.
Many times we hear only about people who die in drink driving incidents, we hardly ever hear about the survivors and what they have to live with everyday.
The news of death in a drink driving incident is more immediate and more final. It appeals to our obsession with tragedy. When we read a front page story that says ‘3 people killed by Drunk Driver,’ we find more interest in this story as a tragedy than one that says “Drunk Driver causes accident, no fatalities.”
So when one of our mates wants to drive home after a party or clubbing when they clearly are not 100% together they say ‘I’m okay, I won’t kill anyone.’ And we don't stop them.
Maybe they will have an accident and maybe they won’t kill anyone, but maybe, they may just damage someone forever.
Maybe they might make someone or themselves a paraplegic, maybe they cause someone to go blind when broken glass goes flying in the air…. you don’t have to drink drive and kill someone to be for it to be classified a tragedy.
The picture at the start of this article is that of Jacqueline Saburido, before a drunk driver changed her life forever. She is a survivor.
In 1999 September 19, early on a Sunday morning, pretty, intelligent 20 year old Jacqui and four friends were heading home after a birthday party. At around the same time, an 18year old high school student Reggie Stephen after having a few to drink with some mates, decided to head home. On a dark road on the outskirts of Austin, Texas, Reggie's car veered into the car carrying Jacqui and her freinds.
Two passengers of her friends died and two, including Jaqui were rescued. But Jacqui was trapped in the car and rescued only after a fire raged through the car and burnt 60 percent of her body. She survived the burns but at great cost. She has lost her fingers, her hair, her ears, her nose, her left eyelid and much of her vision. She has had more than 50 operations since the crash and has many more to go.
This is Jaqui now.
Reggie was convicted of two counts of intoxication manslaughter in 2001 and sentenced to seven years in prison and fined $20,000.
Jaqui is a spokesperson against drink driving. She wanted to be an engineer and help her father with his air conditioning company. Now all that has changed, just because of completely avoidable incident.
Though her story is an American tragedy, its relevant here at home in PNG as well.
Please share this story, send it to your mates, your family…let stop Drink Driving in Papua New Guinea.
Share comments below or email me your articles and news on drink driving. Also join our Facebook campaign Don’t Drink & Drive, Papua New Guinea.
more articles on drink driving here
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