Siouxland District Health and local law officers conducted most traffic stops at Western Iowa Tech Community College Wednesday afternoon to give drivers with disabilities some training.
Sioux City police sergeant Anthony Vondrak was joined by Webster County deputies who pulled over drivers just like they would in a real traffic stop. “Our part in this is to get exposure to the lights, a little bit of the sirens, and to help educate the occupants of the vehicles about staying in the vehicle, keeping your hands where the officers can see them, no quick movements, just general safety that we would tell every person that,” Vondrak says.
The officers provided the drivers tips and feedback after each mock stop. Amanda Bride was one of the disabled drivers to participate. She suffers from fetal alcohol syndrome and has been driving since high school. “I was a little nervous but like I said it’s just practice for what happens in the real world. I’ll know what to expect and I’m glad they have these practice tests,” she says.
Health district spokespeson Angela Drent says the participants came from the Sioux City Knights Special Olympics program and the Opportunities Unlimited Agency. Those who didnt’ drive participated in mock 911 calls simulating what would happen if there had been a car accident and their driver was unresponsive. “They ask them some questions. What’s the situation? Is anybody injured? Where’s their location? And that sort of information really just helps those individuals to have more confidence and it helps to reduce their anxiety in a true emergency,” Drent says.
Each participant received a kit that includes tips for what to do during a traffic stop, and envelope for storing car registration and insurance information, and disability disclosure card, and autism developmental disability disclosure cards if needed.
