Waterbury student, Hartford teen killed in weekend crash: State police
Researchers are concerned about a growing number of young people losing their lives on the roads.
In Connecticut, two teens were killed in a crash in Waterbury over the weekend. One was Hartford 18-year-old Sheily Briceno, and the other was 16-year-old Abdriel Negron-Aviles, who was a student at Wilby High School.
The two were killed after they crashed into two others on Interstate 84 in Waterbury on Sunday, according to state police.
The superintendent says Negron-Aviles said the school’s hearts and prayers go out to his family following his death.
“Over the last 5 or 6 years, we’re starting to see this dramatic increase in the number of teen driver fatalities, said Eric Jackson from the Connecticut Transportation Institute. “So we’re trying to figure out exactly why.”
One theory researchers are considering is whether parents gave their kids more freedom amid COVID-related restrictions.
Officials said that Negro-Aviles did not appear to have a driver’s license or learner’s permit, and that the car he was driving was uninsured. Teenagers, 16-17 years old, with a permit or license in the state face restrictions, including restrictions on passengers, curfew, seatbelts, and cellphones.
“The research shows that just having another peer in the car is a distraction from driving activities. There’s also peer pressure to kind of act abnormally or how you wouldn’t if you were in a car by yourself,” Jackson said.
“I think the most important thing for teen drivers to remember is reduce your distractions, certainly you’re not to be using a cell phone and it’s best to have no passengers,” Kevin Borrup, from Connecticut Children’s Injury Prevention Center, said.
Car crashes are one of the leading causes of death in the U.S. for teens aged 16 to 19, according to AAA.
“We know that the more experience you get, the safer you are as a driver. So, if parents are listening to this, the one thing you can do for new drivers is to give them a lot of experience driving on the road because we know that that will make them a safer driver,” Borrup said.
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