Latest news with #RickGarletts
Yahoo
28-04-2025
- Yahoo
April is Distracted Driving Awareness Month; how YOVASO helps to educate teen drivers
ROANOKE, Va. (WFXR) – April is Distracted Driving Awareness month, just in time for the upcoming prom season, and the Youth of Virginia Speak out About Traffic Safety, YOVASO, tells WFXR that from 2023 to 2024, deadly accidents involving teens were up 15%. YOVASO says between 2021 and 2023, crashes claimed the lives of 169 drivers aged 15 to 19. As prom and graduation season approaches, YOVASO says this is one of the most dangerous times for teens on the road. 'I think teens believe that they're invincible, that they're young, you know, they're going to live forever and a long time,' said Mary King, the YOVASO program manager. 'This does happen. It can happen to me. It can happen to my friend. If I make a bad choice, it could ruin the rest of my life or someone else's life.' 19-year-old motorcyclist dies in crash in Radford YOVASO also says that of those teens killed, 58% were not wearing seatbelts, however, the organization is hopeful that a new law requiring everyone in the car to wear a seatbelt, no matter the age, or where they sit, will help. That law takes effect in July. 'Cars are basically 2,000 or 3,000 pound missiles and manufacturers do a really good job at trying to protect the occupants of that vehicle, but, they can only do so much,' said Rick Garletts, the Public Information Officer for the sixth division of the Virginia State Police, 'The driver is is the one that is responsible for protecting everybody in that vehicle, and as long as we put the stuff down that takes our attention away from operating that vehicle, the better off we're going to be.' YOVASO works alongside multiple schools in the Commonwealth to help bring awareness to distracted and impaired driving, focusing on that peer-to-peer relationship. Three killed in single-vehicle crash in Botetourt County 'It's very important that teens remind each other to be safe. We want teens to look at it as the cool thing to do. The cool thing to do is to obey the speed limits. Put your seatbelt on, put away that phone, and be careful because you don't want to be responsible for hurting someone else in your car or someone else on the roadway or for hurting yourself, and your parents really want you to make it home safely,' said King. At William Byrd High School (WBHS), one of the student-run groups that works alongside YOVASO will host a mock car accident on April 28th at 6 p.m. in front of the school to continue to raise awareness for impaired driving. YOVASO is preparing for its annual summer retreat for students from rising 9th graders to graduating seniors, teachers, resource officers, and youth community groups. The four-day weekend will teach more about safe driving. You can register and learn more here. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
25-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
National Drug Take Back day, how locales are helping the community
ROANOKE, Va. (WFXR) – One of the easiest ways for drug abusers to find their fix is in the drug cabinets of family and friends. Forgotten or expired drugs can make their way into the hands of people they were not meant for. To prevent that, the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) is holding a National Drug Take Back on Saturday, April 26th. This event encourages everyone in the community to remove unneeded or expired medicine. The DEA says this is a way to keep these drugs out of the hands of those who might misuse them, especially minors. Kroger Health joins National Drug Take Back Day initiative 'Let's say the kids want to experiment with a narcotic. This takes that opportunity away from them. It gives you a safe way to get rid of the unwanted or unused drugs as well. And they just don't, they don't fall into the wrong hands or they don't get into children's hands just for curiosity's sake,' said Rick Garletts, the public information officer for the Virginia State Police 6th division. The Roanoke City Police Department will be at Melrose Plaza from 11 a.m. until 2 p.m. on Saturday, collecting any medicine, no questions asked. The only thing that cannot be taken is any kind of needle or sharps. 'It gives us the ability to be able to make sure that seniors or family members in their community are made aware that getting those unused prescriptions or over the drug medications out of your house, especially if they expired and things like that, and putting them back into a safe space or environment where we can then turn them back in for you,' said Roanoke City Sheriff Antonio Hash. Lynchburg Krogers to host DEA's National Drug Take Back Day Along with the drug take-back, you can bring up to two bags of documents to the Melrose Plaza to shred to avoid anyone taking your information for scams. In last year's drug take-back day, the DEA reported that the Commonwealth received more than 17,000 lbs of drugs. 'It amazes me every year how much poundage of medication we do take back. It shows that people are paying attention. They're checking their expiration dates. They're getting rid of the things that they don't need. And, you know, even if it's just one bottle, that's one bottle that might not make it to the wrong hands,' said Derrick Botkins, the Director of Pharmacy Services at Lewis Gale. There will be multiple drug take-back events across the commonwealth on Saturday. You can click here, enter your zip code, and find the closest one to you. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
