FORT LEONARD WOOD, Mo. -- Fort Leonard Wood community members experienced what to do -- and what not to do --to stay safe this summer during the interactive Safety and Health Fair May 16 at Nutter Field House.
The fair is part of the 100 Days of Summer safety campaign, designed "to enhance safety awareness for the Fort Leonard Wood community before the traditional summer holiday period, from Memorial Day to Labor Day," said Randy Sipes, Fort Leonard Wood safety specialist.
The fair included 60 organizational booths, offering a variety of safety demonstrations, activities, giveaways and games.
"We're trying to incorporate more hands-on stuff because a lot of times, you walk by and pick up (a pamphlet) off the table and walk on -- it just doesn't quite get the message across," Sipes said.
One of the more elaborate demonstrations, held in the Nutter Field House parking lot, was a "docu-drama" of a head-on collision caused by a drunk driver. Emergency responders used the "jaws of life" to open up a crushed car and medically evacuate the "victims" inside.
At the Missouri Department of Transportation exhibit, participants had to drive a go-kart through a maze of cones while using a cell phone or wearing drunk driving goggles.
"It definitely proved why there should be a law against driving while texting, because it's dangerous," said Staff Sgt. Derek Olk, Combat Training Committee, who knocked over more than a few cones during his turn at the wheel. Earlier on, another driver left the maze altogether and almost knocked over some nearby tables, he added.
The Missouri Highway Patrol's exhibit included a seatbelt convincer and rollover convincer. On the seatbelt convincer, riders were buckled into a car seat on an incline; once released, they hit a barrier at 5 mph.
"You feel a kind of jolt," said Sgt. Michael Chambers, 515th Engineer Company, 5th Engineer Battalion, after riding the seatbelt convincer. "You just feel like the skin on your bones comes off."
"You want to definitely wear your seatbelt," he added. "If I was doing this -- and going that slow -- without a seatbelt, I'd probably hit my head."
The rollover convincer demonstrated what happens when drivers and passengers do not buckle up. The convincer truck cab had two dummies inside without seatbelts, which were flung through the windows when it was rotated.
"The point we're trying to make here is 'Buckle up, buckle up, buckle up,'" said Sgt. Dan Crain, Missouri State Highway Patrol. "If we keep folks buckled up inside the vehicle, they are much, much more likely to survive."
Inside Nutter Field House, the Maneuver Support Center of Excellence and Better Opportunities for Single Soldiers hosted a safety game show, in which competitors had to use a buzzer to answer questions about drinking and driving.
"They have a lot of fun with the competition," said Sgt. James Dougherty, BOSS volunteer.
However, he said the quiz is designed so participants will remember the answers later on as well. "I think they'll be more aware of blood-alcohol content levels," he added.
The Army Community Service Family Advocacy Program's booth demonstrated how damaging shaking a baby can be by asking people to shake the Shaken Baby Syndrome Baby Simulator. The life-like dummy cried like a real baby, but had a clear face so that people could see the "brain" underneath -- when shaken, the injured areas of its brain lit up.
Sgt. Daniel Brown, Company 2, 2nd Battalion, 10th Infantry Regiment, tried shaking the simulator baby for a few seconds, and its brain showed injuries in motor control, eyesight and emotions.
"Even that feels wrong," Brown said about shaking the simulator. "I wouldn't want anybody to do that to my kids, and I wouldn't want to do that to anyone else's kids."
Michelle Fuemmeler brought her sons Cameron, 6, and Jonathan, 8, to the fair, and they traveled from booth to booth, stocking up on stickers, coloring books, gadgets and reminders to stay safe this summer.
"It's pretty educational, especially for the boys," she said. "It brings out a lot of information that a lot of spouses wouldn't normally get or know where to find."
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