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Watch VideoPueblo coalition works to prevent underage drinking and drug use
David Ortiviz
It's a problem that affects almost every city and town in America--teenagers drinking and abusing alcohol. Some of them are getting behind the wheel and the consequences can be deadly. But a group of professionals in Pueblo is committed to making a difference. They got together nearly four years ago after a terrible crash stunned everyone.
On July 24, 2004 three young people, ages 18 to 20, died in a drinking and driving car crash in Pueblo. "It was a very bad crash for the city of Pueblo," said Pueblo Police Deputy Chief Andrew McLachlan. "It's one of the worst I've ever seen," he added.
"There was a body laying out in the street," said Kim Moore, a neighbor. "That's the worst part of all of it, just to hear how their bodies were," said Myra Trujillo, one of the victim's sister.
Pueblo police say their car split in half, after the driver sped past a stop sign at about a hundred miles an hour, and slammed into a tree.
"Shouldn't have gotten in the car, knowing she (the driver) was drinking," said Nicole Rousseau, the sole survivor.
Rousseau, then 17, was thrown from the vehicle on impact. Incredibly her feet were driven through a wall at a nearby house. Her injuries were severe.
"My gut instinct told me not to go," Rousseau said.
She calls the choices she and her friends made foolish. Three of them, including the driver, had been drinking at a party earlier that night. "It's just stupid you know. Naive," Rousseau said.
Naive but not unusual. Research shows one in three teens have been in a car with someone who has been drinking and one in ten teens have gotten behind the wheel while impaired. Sadly sometimes the outcome can be deadly.
"We lose three teenagers at one time. It was wake up a call for us to get something done," said Yvonne Gallegos. Shortly after the crash and as a direct result of it, Gallegos formed the Pueblo Coalition to Prevent Underage Drinking.
Every month hospital workers, school leaders, counselors, a judge and police come together to figure out how to prevent some of the estimated 5,000 deaths in the U.S. each year, involving underage drinking.
"If we don't try to break the cycle then its just going to keep getting worse," said Deputy Chief McLachlan.
The Pueblo group combines strict enforcement with continuous education. "We had just a little over a thousand tickets last year," said Bill Alexander, a Pueblo Municipal Court Judge.
Group members regularly go to schools to talk with teens, and they host meetings for parents. Their best advice for parents is to have good communication with their children. "I would tell the parents be aware of what your kids are doing. Be nosy," said Gallegos.
Recently their mission has evolved. A growing drug problem came to the forefront last September when Corey Suazo, a Pueblo teen died from an overdose of cocaine and Oxycodone.
Doctors say an alarming 48% of teens who go to the emergency room in this country, have taken over-the-counter or prescription drugs. Treatment counselors in Pueblo are seeing it too. "Especially the opiates, such as Vicodin, OxyContin, Oxycodone," said Dianne Hayhurst-Vigil, a counselor at Crossroads Turning Points in Pueblo. "They're really getting into some dangerous behavior," added Gallegos.
Its difficult to measure the impact the group has had in Pueblo, but they're being noticed across the front range. "We're getting calls from other communities to help them start coalitions," said Gallegos.
As for Rousseau, almost four years after the crash, her broken bones and bruises have all healed, but she still lives with the pain of losing three friends. "I really do wish they were here with me," Rousseau said.
She tries to focus on the future. Rousseau is a mother now, and aspiring to become a social worker to help troubled teens. "The best advice I can give is don't drink and drive," Rousseau said. "Call your mom or your dad and be like hey look I messed up, I drank, can you come get me? Why risk your life when you have so much going for you," she added.
To learn more about the Pueblo Coalition to Prevent Underage Drinking and Drugging contact Crossroads Turning Points.
