An event designed to educate young people on road safety has been held in Carlisle.
The event, held in partnership between police and Cumbria Fire & Rescue Service, was held on Wednesday 26th September at Carlisle Fire Station.
The evening offered members of the public a chance to receive expert advice, a chance to view an educational video and witness a display on how casualties are extracted from a car.
Roger Lytollis, from the News & Star, and student Oliwia Zagrodna volunteered to play the part as occupants of the vehicle during the display conducted by firefighters.
Arnold Clark, BMW Carlisle and Hyundai Carlisle provided a BMW M4, a Hyundai i30N and a Ford Fiesta ST to support the event.
Also present were drivers who had been caught committing minor road traffic offences on Wednesday evening with offending motorists offered the opportunity to receive education rather than receive a fixed penalty notice.
The event was part of the Constabulary’s week of action that is being conducted to highlight neighbourhood policing across the county.
PCSO Laura Woods, who organised the event, said: “I’d like to thank all those who came down on Wednesday evening and took part in some of our road safety activities.
“Those who attended enjoyed the displays put on and more importantly gained valuable advice about how to stay safe on the county’s roads.
“I’d like to say a big thank you to Cumbria Fire & Service for hosting the event and for the casualty extraction display.
“I’d also like to thank all local businesses who supported the event in donating gifts for our charity raffle, to the car dealerships who displayed cars to use as an engagement topic and both Asda and Sainsbury’s who donated snacks and refreshments for attendees.”
Cumbria’s Police and Crime Commissioner Peter McCall said: “I would like to add my thanks to everyone involved in organising and supporting this event. Clearly a lot of thought and effort had gone into coming up with innovative ways to engage with young people on the subject of road safety, and get the messages across about what they can do to keep themselves, their passengers, and other road-users – safe.
“Sadly, all too often we hear about tragedies on our roads, which is why road-safety is one of my priorities, and why I promised to put more resources into this as part of my council tax pledge. In short, whatever we can do together with our partners to educate and inform young people in a way that resonates with them is to be welcomed.”
The raffle raised £95 for road safety charity Brake.
Local businesses and organisations who either donated items or were involved are; Arnold Clark, Asda, Auto Fix Carlisle, BMW Carlisle, Citroen Carlisle, Cumbria Fire & Rescue Service, Euro Parts Carlisle, Gates Tyres, Halfords, Hyundai Carlisle, Lloyd Mini Carlisle, McDonalds and Sainsbury’s.
