Follow live tweets of a road accident simulation this Friday

3 Oct 2013

As part of an eight-week Winter Road Casualty Reduction Programme, Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council has arranged a public demonstration of a road traffic accident that will be documented live on Twitter.

The ‘accident’ will take place at the University College Dublin campus in Belfield, south Dublin, and students are invited to attend and watch as the scene unfolds.

A serious head-on traffic collision involving two vehicles will play out from 11am on Friday, 4 October, in an effort to highlight the importance of safe driving among the 18-24 age group. In 2012, 162 people died on Irish roads, and 30pc of those were under 25.

The demonstration will also serve as a live training exercise for emergency service teams from Dublin Fire Brigade, HSE National Ambulance Service Paramedics and An Garda Síochána.

The vehicles will be placed in a crashed position and actors from local Civil Defence volunteer units will play the casualties. Another actor will play a passer-by that witnesses the crash and calls 999/112.

Observers at the scene will be able to see what happens in the aftermath of a crash, including vehicle extrication, pre-hospital emergency care and accident scene investigation by gardaí. Injuries suffered in the ‘crash’ will include an open head wound as a result of driving without wearing a seatbelt.

Garda breathalyses driver

Twitter users can follow the road traffic accident simulation through @StopRTAs, which will tweet pictures, video, comments and safety messages as it happens. Onlookers at the event can also join in and add their own perspectives.

Other members of the emergency services will be on hand to explain what is happening to observers, and an announcer will provide live updates and interviews with incident commanders. Road safety advisers will also provide safety gear and information to students at the event.

Elaine Burke is the host of For Tech’s Sake, a co-production from Silicon Republic and The HeadStuff Podcast Network. She was previously the editor of Silicon Republic.

editorial@siliconrepublic.com