It is suggested that on any given day, 660,000 people are attempting to use their smartphones while driving. According to the National Safety Council, cell phone use while driving leads to about 1.6 million crashes every year. These crashes lead to approximately 390,000 injuries. Texting while driving is 6 times more likely to lead to a crash than driving while intoxicated. Teens seem to be the worst offenders. Although 94% admitted to being aware of the dangers of texting while driving, 35 percent admitted to texting while driving anyway. This led to 21% of teen drivers involved in fatal accidents being distracted by their cell phones.
The Epoch Times reports on a teen whose death while texting inspired a campaign to stop others from texting while driving.
When 19-year-old Angelina Holloway hit a tree on April 18, 2016, she died on impact. She was also texting at the time, taking her eyes off of the road and losing control of her vehicle.
Since Holloway’s 2016 death, her mother has been working to raise awareness of the dangers of texting while driving. Holloway always wore her seatbelt, but her mother had talked to her about texting while driving.
The campaign, which was launched by the Citrus County Sheriff’s Office, is called #JustDriveCitrus.
The campaign utilizes a picture of Holloway, along with the last text she sent, just minutes before her car crashed into the tree. Holloway’s mother hopes that it brings awareness to the growing issue of teens texting while driving.
