DEATH DELIVERS LESSON GRIM SCENES SHOW TRAGEDY OF DRUNK DRIVING.

Byline: Holly Edwards Staff Writer

CANYON COUNTRY - Though the car crash was only a simulation, it stirred painfully real emotions among the Canyon High School students watching from the bleachers - many of whom lost friends this year in a crash that killed three students.

The dramatic scene began Thursday morning as fire trucks and patrol cars roared onto the football field with sirens wailing and stopped beside the wreckage of two cars.

Inside the mangled pile of steel and shattered glass, four badly injured teens could be seen covered with blood. A few were moving slowly, the rest were lying motionless.

Paramedics rushed to pull the teens from the wreckage, using the Jaws of Life to remove the roof of one of the cars, while a helicopter landed to transport a seriously injured survivor to the hospital.

Two of the teens were declared ``dead'' and placed in body bags as two deputies dressed as grim reapers waited to take them away.

Meanwhile, the young driver who caused the crash failed a sobriety test and was arrested for vehicular manslaughter and driving under the influence of alcohol.

As they watched Thursday's staged crash, the climax of the daylong Every 15 Minutes program, many students sat with their hands covering their mouths, fighting back tears. Others wept openly and embraced.

``It brings back a lot of memories of friends of mine who were killed,'' said Brooke O'Reilly, 17, crying and hugging two friends beside her. ``This is going to really hit a lot of people hard.''

In February, Dominick Ianozzi, 16; Timothy Renolds, 17; and Daniel Renolds, 15, were killed when a car driven by their schoolmate Marcus Lellan collided head-on with a passing motorist who was also killed.

The simulated car crash was the third staged at Santa Clarita schools through the Every 15 Minutes program. Launched locally in 1999 at Valencia High School, the program was also held at Hart High School earlier this year.

While the name was coined in the early 1990s when one person was killed in this country every 15 minutes as a result of an alcohol-related car crash, the situation has improved somewhat since then. Statistics now show one person is killed every half-hour in an alcohol-related wreck.

Though the program has been criticized by some for being too vivid and disturbing, Canyon High Assistant Principal Bob Messina said it is designed to be emotional and hard-hitting.

``Sometimes it takes getting people upset to remind them of the dangers of drinking and driving,'' Messina said. ``I'd rather have people a little upset than have a student killed.''

The program began first thing Thursday morning as one student was removed from a classroom every 15 minutes by a sickle-wielding deputy dressed as the Grim Reaper.

As each student was led away, an announcement came over the loudspeaker saying that the student had died in an alcohol-related car crash.

A counselor then read the student's obituary, which was written by one or both of the student's parents. While a few students joked during the Grim Reaper's arrival, all sat in sober attention during the obituary readings.

By the end of the day, more than 20 students were officially designated the walking dead, made up to look like corpses and given black T-shirts to wear. They were not allowed to communicate with any students for the rest of the day.

``It's kind of weird,'' said 17-year-old Fred Gamble, as his face was painted a ghostly white. ``It's a little bit like being killed. I don't know how my friends would react if I really did die.''

Messina said he tried to select a wide range of students to be among the walking dead so that every student in the school would know one of them.

``I got the finest students and the worst students, the great athletes and the smokers, the best football players, and the kids who throw the best parties,'' Messina said. ``It's an interesting mix of students, and they'll all go through something special together.''

For some students and teachers, the program proved to be emotionally overwhelming.

Teacher Louise Davies wept uncontrollably before a student was removed from her classroom and had to be escorted to a counseling room set up during the program.

``She was really upset because this reminded her of some losses in her life and the young boys who were killed this year,'' said Vicki White, a school counselor. ``Even though this isn't real, it reminds us of things that were real.''

Jill Butler was the only teacher among the school's walking dead and said she was nauseated and shaky all day.

``I look at these kids, and I'm so scared for them,'' she said. ``You just know the goofy stuff they're doing and they have no idea what life has to offer beyond high school. I just wonder how many will be dead before their 10th reunion.''

At the end of the day, all of the ``dead'' students were taken to the Valencia Hyatt for the night. They were counseled by school and Sheriff's Department officials and asked to write final letters to their parents.

Students were expected to read the letters and be reunited with their parents during a school assembly Friday morning.

``It's the most emotional thing you'll ever see,'' said sheriff's Deputy Mike Shapiro, who organized Thursday's program. ``There are 26 kids who would never say boo to each other crying and hugging.''

Funded primarily by the city, the program costs about $12,500 to stage, Shapiro said. However, he added that when the volunteer manpower hours and donated equipment are factored into the equation, the figure is closer to $100,000.

But Shapiro said the money and months of preparation are well-spent.

``I've run into kids at the mall who've told me they haven't had a drink since they saw the program,'' he said. ``It really stays with them.''

CAPTION(S):

4 photos

Photo:

(1 -- color) A sheriff's deputy dressed as the Grim Reaper comes to pull a student from class Thursday to demonstrate the deadly toll of drunk driving for students at Canyon High School as part of the Every 15 Minutes program.

(2 -- 3 -- color) Firefighters pull a teen from a car wreck, above, during a mock car crash Thursday at Canyon High. At right, senior Chris Johnson gives a graphic portrayal of a student killed by drunk driving.

(4) Counselor Vicki White, left, comforts Canyon High teacher Louise Davies after one of her students was taken from class Thursday in a simulation of the tragedy of drunk driving.

David R. Crane/Staff Photographer