SAINTE-ADÈLE – After surviving a violent altercation that left his friend between life and death, an 18-year-old driver is hoping to make motorists and their passengers aware of the importance of wearing their seat belts properly.
“Loralie, she often just has her pelvis fastened, with the belt behind her. I think a lot of people do that. We do it to feel more comfortable, but basically we don’t think about the consequences in case of an accident,” says Zak-Alex Dubois, 18.
On the evening of June 8, the young driver was due to drive to a friend’s house in Sainte-Agathe-des-Monts with his girlfriend Chloe Desjardins and her 17-year-old friend Loralie Dénommé. While driving his vehicle, Zak-Alex Dubois noticed that the road was slippery due to the rain.
Around 8 p.m., the three youths collided head-on with an oncoming Tecnic vehicle on Route 117 near Val-Morin. The 16-year-old driver was in her second driving lesson. Luckily she escaped unharmed.
The car is a total loss. Photo Zak Alex Dubois
“We don’t know what happened, which of us deviated from our path. Eventually I just heard Chloe scream. To protect them, I turned the steering wheel to absorb the impact on my side,” explains Zak-Alex Dubois, who was unaware that his friend had been sitting in the back on the driver’s side.
A brutal shock
Loralie’s vitals were held at waist height only by her seat belt, resisting the shock. Stomach hole, liver and pancreas affected, broken vertebrae, the teenager had to undergo emergency surgery primarily on the intestines.
“Because of her broken vertebrae, she has to learn to walk again. We’re talking about a very slow recovery with a long hospital stay,” says a devastated Chloe Desjardins.
Photo Audrey Robitaille
Loralie went into an induced coma upon arrival at the hospital and was able to wake up for the first time on Tuesday. However, she is recovering from a serious infection she contracted during one of her three surgeries.
His mother hasn’t left his bed for a week, except to eat at the cafeteria or sleep in his car. She has been without an income for months due to medical reasons and hopes to be able to provide her daughter with the care she deserves.
“We’ve started raising funds that will be used, among other things, to buy Loralie a quality wheelchair to meet her long-term needs,” says Chloe.
Photo Chloe Desjardins
sensitization
The accident on June 8 had the effect of an electric shock for young people. For Zak-Alex Dubois, it’s the guilt that weighs him down the most. The memories of personal encounters will always be painful.
“After the accident, Chloe and Loralie were down and unable to walk. I approached Loralie, she couldn’t speak. I just saw a tear roll down her cheek. I said to myself: Why am I the one running?” says the young driver with difficulty.
Photo Chloe Desjardins
Chloe, meanwhile, doesn’t understand why she escaped with so few injuries.
“I’m just very thankful for life because I usually put my feet on the windshield.” Why didn’t I put them this time? I don’t know, but it probably saved me,” she breathes.
Keep in mind that according to the Sûreté du Québec (SQ) annual report released in January, almost 30% of victims who died in traffic accidents in 2022 were not wearing seat belts.