5-16-14 teen driving deaths

Crashes are the number one killer of teens and Fond du Lac County has a higher teen crash death rate compared to the statewide average.   According to the Wisconsin Interactive Statistics on Health,  there were 342 emergency room visits, 24 hospitalizations, and seven deaths between 2007 and 2011 in Fond du lac County.  Fond du Lac County Public Health Maternal Child Health coordinator, Jean Weston, says her department is working  on a new initiative to address the issue.  Weston says a program through Centers for Disease Control  and Prevention called  Parents are the Key offers parents tools and proven steps for reducing teen driving injuries and deaths.  Weston says the program focuses on what they call the eight danger zones of  teen driving.  "The number one danger zone is the driver inexperience,"  Weston told WFDL news.  She says new drivers  are more likely to be involved in a fatal crash mostly due to driver inexperience.  Other danger zones include teens driving with other teen passengers, nighttime driving, not using a seatbelt, distracted, drousy or reckless driving and impaired driving.