On today's show, Adrian and Ethan talk about distracted driving in teens and the increase during the pandemic.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, distracted driving is dangerous, claiming 2,841 lives in 2018 alone. Among those killed: 1,730 drivers, 605 passengers, 400 pedestrians and 77 bicyclists.
Distracted drivers put not only themselves at risk, but everyone else using the road.
Teens are more likely to get into a traffic accident than any other age group, according to the Center for Disease Control (CDC). One of the leading causes of teen crashes is distracted driving. According to the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, driver distraction is responsible for more than 58% of teen crashes.
Peer passengers are a dangerous distraction for teen drivers. A teen driver with only one additional passenger doubles the risk of getting into a fatal car accident. The crash risk triples with two or more teen passengers.
Being cooped up in our own homes during the pandemic has made us more attached to our mobile devices.
The isolation of the pandemic increases the dependence on social media for an already technology-addicted teen population. The social media addiction increases the likelihood that teenage drivers will feel compelled to check for every text, tweet, and like, even while driving, which increases the risk of a catastrophic collision.
A new study of COVID-era car crashes finds that a shocking 27 percent of all drivers were using their cell phones within 60 seconds of impact.
We can always count on kids to see the issues and set out to make a difference.
High School Students and Sisters Nanette and Krystal Amihere Launch Caring for the Needy with Kindness
Nanette and Krystal were raised in a family that loves to give back to communities near and far. Two years ago, their mother, Christina, traveled to her home country of Ghana to visit family, as well as donate food, water, and school supplies to local villages nearby. After doing some research, they realized that there weren’t any local youth advocacy groups in their community with a focus on helping those in need—so they decided to start their own.
Their organization, CNK Health Services, gives back to underprivileged communities within Laurel, people experiencing homelessness, as well as anyone who doesn’t have basic necessities. Nanette says the family chose the name because it stands for their initials as well as “Caring for the Needy with Kindness.”
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, the girls saw a new need right there in the local community, and decided to pivot their focus. They launched a brand new initiative called ‘Let’s Make Masks’ to create and donate handmade cloth face masks for healthcare workers and senior citizens in Laurel.
