"FATAL VISION" PROJECT WILL HELP CALHOUN STUDENTS UNDERSTAND DRUNK DRIVING

(05/01/2009)

A prom week "Fatal Vision" project at Calhoun Middle-High School will remind students about the consequences of drinking and driving.

Local State Farm agent Tim Moore said "This project will help drive home that driving under the influence is dangerous and sometimes fatal business."

After years of wrecks and fatalities on Prom Night, students and parents have become more responsible, but it is a high risk time.

The State Farm project will be using special Fatal Vision glasses, which creates a world that seems to sway and things are out of focus with a feeling of queasiness.

When subjects put on a pair of goggles they make a sober person feel drunk, after which they have exaggerated body movements when trying to walk a straight line, one of the tests police officers use to confirm DUI.

The individuals wearing the glasses have great difficulty, flailing and falling.

Because people get intoxicated over the course of several hours, they do not comprehend their alcohol-induced haze and impairment.

With the Fatal Vision program, "People have fun, but they also get the serious side of it," said Moore.

The "Fatal Vision" program will be given on May 13 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the school, with parents and visitors welcome to attend.