An 18-year old female pupil recently recounted to me an incident that occurred about a year ago. She got in a car (rear nearside) with two other known male friends of equal age. The driver was unknown to her but known to her friends. One of her male friends said to the driver: "Scare her". The driver proceeded to drive at a speed that he could not control the car, which ended up flipping upside down in a ditch (see image). Miraculously, all four occupants survived with minimal injuries which is nothing short of a miracle in itself.
Many thoughts are in my mind, which leaves me quite cold regarding what is behind the instruction "Scare her". I don't have any daughters myself, but this is the stuff that would make fathers lose sleep, I imagine.
A different pupil relayed to me only a month or so ago another horrifying event. She also found herself in a car (sat in the same position), with two female friends but a male driver. The driver was only known to her friend, who was sat in the front passenger seat. The driver, unprovoked, starts 'showboating' by driving at speed with left and right swerves on a single carriageway road. He loses control of the car with a lorry oncoming, swerves abruptly to miss the lorry and similarly, overturns the car. Not so lucky on this occasion regarding consequences. Out of all the occupants in the car, my pupil was the only one wearing a seat belt. She regained consciousness outside the overturned car (her exit remains a mystery to her to this day). The friend in the back next to her died. The driver was seen by witnesses emptying vodka out of a bottle.
The similarities between the two events are striking.
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