It’s the phone call that every parent fears the most — that their child has been killed.

Every 15 minutes someone in this country dies as a result of a drunk driving-related accident. And this time of the year with high school prom and graduation, teens are more at risk of becoming a grim statistic.

As a way to help prevent this from happening to local teens and their parents, the Sedona Fire District and Sedona Red Rock High School are once again teaming up for the Every 15 Minutes program. The two-day event will begin on Thursday, April 16, with a mock DUI accident on the high school baseball field. There, one student dies at the scene while another is taken to the hospital but despite attempts by medical personnel, dies on the operating table.

In describing the program, the Every 15 Minutes’ website states, “This emotionally-charged program is an event designed to dramatically instill teenagers with the potentially dangerous consequences of drinking alcohol and texting while driving. This powerful program will challenge students to think about drinking, texting while driving, personal safety and the responsibility of making mature decisions when lives are involved.”

The next day the school’s juniors and seniors will meet in the Sedona Performing Arts Center for the mock trial of the driver followed by the funeral of the two students killed.

To read the full story, see the Wednesday, April 15, edition of the Sedona Red Rock News.