Stark warning on road safety

Lisburn Policing and Community Safety Partnership (PCSP) alongside local police, Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service and the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service delivered key road safety messages to students across Lisburn to coincide with Road Safety Week.
Pupils from Lisburn Schools watch the Emergency Services in action during a collision demonstration.Pupils from Lisburn Schools watch the Emergency Services in action during a collision demonstration.
Pupils from Lisburn Schools watch the Emergency Services in action during a collision demonstration.

The road safety campaign targeted young people who have recently started to drive or are about to begin driving lessons.

The three emergency services delivered a stark account of their experiences at scenes of serious and fatal collisions, followed by a demonstration of a collision and the work that the three emergency services have to perform.

The consequences for the driver and passengers at these demonstrations were also evident for the young people to see.

Lisburn PCSP Chairman, Councillor Brian Bloomfield commented: “I welcome Lisburn PCSP and the emergency services working together to educate our young drivers and how to make our roads safer for all road users.

“By engaging with young people at an early stage of their driving career through this campaign will reinforce the cruel reality of road death and how normal, everyday life can turn to tragedy.”

Lisburn PSNI Area Commander, Chief Inspector John Wilson said: “Inattention and speed, or more accurately, excessive speed for the conditions and drink or drug driving, are consistently the principal causes of the most serious road traffic collisions in which people are killed or seriously injured on roads here.

“Young people who are new to using the roads need to be made aware of these dangers as much as anyone else is. We all need to play our part in road safety, especially as it gets darker earlier.

“Road users must accept their responsibility to think about their actions on the roads and modify their driving to cope with winter conditions. Similarly, pedestrians and cyclists need to see and be seen.”

Lisburn Fire Station Commander, Stephen McDowell added: “This stark simulated road traffic collision rescue demonstrated by Fire, Police and Ambulance conveys the carnage that members of the Emergency Services witness all too often on our roads.

“Our Firefighters have seen the devastation of irresponsible road user behaviour too many times this year.

“We are all responsible for road safety – we all have a responsibility to do all we can.”