The National Safety Council (NSC) has recently announced the initiation of the HEARTS Network. The council is asking teens and family members to offer their personal stories of survival or tragedy following a car accident in Manhattan or elsewhere to help create awareness for the seriousness of this public health threat nationwide.
Queens teen car accident lawyers understand how parents want to keep their children safe from these tragedies. Losing a loved one is difficult under any circumstance, but the loss of a child in a tragic accident can be devastating.
There have been several recent teen car accidents in New York. Your News Now reports a car full of teens crashed in Johnstown recently, killing a 19-year-old passenger and seriously injuring his sister. The driver of the vehicle was going too fast to come to a halt at a stop sign while showing off the speed of his Ford Mustang. He passed through the intersection, hit an embankment and struck a pickup truck, which caused his Mustang to flip over to the other side of the pickup truck. The car landed wedged between the small truck and a house. The 19-year-old was pronounced dead at the scene while his sister was fighting for her life with severe head and spinal injuries. The teen driver sustained minor bruises.
Syracuse.com reports of a separate accident that has landed a 17-year-old female driver in the hospital with serious injuries after being involved in a two-car crash. The teen driver was struck in an intersection by a crossing vehicle as she passed through in Onondaga County. Rescue crews had to extricate the teen from her vehicle and transport her to Upstate University Hospital with multiple serious injuries.
These and other stories are why the NSC has partnered with The Allstate Foundation to create the HEARTS Network. HEARTS stands for Honoring Everyone Affected, Rallying the Survivors.
“Sharing these stories also can be of great benefit to people working through grief or recovering from a serious injury,” said David Teater, NSC’s senior director of Transportation Initiatives. “Trying to make something positive come out of a tragedy can be very helpful to survivors.”
Teen car crashes are the number one cause of death for this age group. But, it is not only teens that are affected in these crashes as roughly two-thirds of victims killed in these crashes are not between the ages 15-20. Passengers, pedestrians, bicyclists and other motorists of all ages are often killed in a crash involving a teen driver.
Participants of the HEARTS Network are encouraged to work within their communities to share stories of survival and tragedy. Participants can create awareness about the dangers teen drivers face when they speed or drive distracted through stories of personal tragedy and can also relate stories of recovering from a serious accident.
New York is one of 10 states that receives funding from The Allstate Foundation and support from the NSC for advocacy groups like Teen Safe Driving Coalitions. Members of the HEARTS Network are encouraged to get involved and advocate for traffic safety groups to get the message out and help reduce teen tragedies nationwide. Other states receiving funding include California, Texas, Minnesota, Tennessee, Florida, Illinois, Maryland, Pennsylvania and New Jersey.
If you want to connect with survivors, share your personal story involving a teen-related car crash or educate your community on the life-long impact these tragedies can have on families visit NSC HEARTS Network online to learn how to become a participant or get more information about this important movement.
The Law Offices of Nicholas Rose, PLLC is dedicated to helping victims recover from a car accident in Manhattan or elsewhere throughout the state of New York. If you or a family member has been injured in a car accident, call 1-877-313-7673 to receive a free consultation from an experienced car accident attorney.
Additional Resources:
Teen killed, sister critically injured in Johnstown crash, by Solomon Syed, Your News Now.
Cicero teen seriously injured in two-car crash, by Charles Ellis, posted in syracuse.com.
More Blog Entries:
Nassau County Reports Fewer Intersection-Related Car Accidents after Installation of Red Light Cameras, New York Injury Lawyer Blog, October 24, 2011.
New York Teens at Most Risk of Car Accident Involvement withing 30 Days of Obtaining a License, New York Injury Lawyer Blog, October 18, 2011.
