Today marks the 22nd anniversary of an event that changed Trevor Chambers’ life forever.
It was June 16, 1993. Chambers — a 27-year-old oil and gas worker at that time — and some of his coworkers were drinking hard after a long day of work, when the group decided to head into Brooks, Alta. to have a few more drinks.
Chambers was impaired when he jumped into the pick-up truck of one of his coworkers. Although he wasn’t the guy driving the vehicle, the driver was also in no shape to operate a motor vehicle.
The driver blazed along One Tree Road at a speed of 160 km/h until it rolled off the road. The accident threw Chambers from the truck.
The driver was treated for minor injuries in the Brooks hospital and released. One of the other passengers was admitted to the Brooks hospital with various injuries. Another in the truck suffered severe back injuries and had to be escorted to Calgary via ambulance.
Chambers had to be airlifted to Calgary by STARS as he was found with severe brain injuries, which resulted in him being in a coma for six weeks. When emergency workers found him face down in a field, they discovered he also had broken ribs and a dislocated hip.
Chambers presented to Grade 9 and 10 students in the St. Paul Regional gymnasium last Wednesday about the penalties drinking and driving has had on his life. Some of the tragic consequences are evident upon first glance. His right leg is in a knee brace. His arms continually shake with intense tremors. His speech has also been affected.
“In 60 seconds, my life changed forever,” said Chambers. “I sometimes feel anger towards myself for the error I made and towards the person driving under the influence.
“I no longer could go to work. I could no longer play with my son, who was seven years old at the time of the accident.”
He had to relearn to walk. He had to relearn to talk. He had to rebuild his memory.
“I couldn’t remember much of anything that happened before the accident. I felt some of my life was taken away from me.”
He warned the students against not only the dangers of drinking and driving, but he told them not to be distracted drivers either, or let over-the-counter drugs impair their driving ability. A vehicle “can be a very dangerous weapon.”
“Choosing to drink and drive is a selfish act,” says Chambers. “You can’t imagine what it is like for a police officer to knock on a family’s door when they are at a dinner table to tell them the news that someone in their family died in an accident caused by drinking. You can’t imagine how hard it would be for them to tell a kid with wide eyes looking up at you that their dad, mom, brother or sister isn’t here anymore.”
For close to the past 15 years, Chambers has been traveling throughout the province to share his message with schools and other functions.
One of the most powerful moments of the presentation came near the end. Two students were called up in front of the gym to take part in a demonstration. Both of the girls drank a cup of water. Chambers then attempted to do the same thing. Due to his hands trembling intensely, most of the water splashed onto his shirt or on the ground instead of entering his mouth.
“That demonstration really hit home with me,” said Ashley Dary, a safety administration and human resources worker with Xtreme Oilfield Technology, the company that sponsored the presentation. “It really broke my heart to see that. The presentation was very impactful.”
Chambers told the Journal he hopes the students walked away from his presentation feeling encouraged to take in all that life has to offer, and to avoid making decisions that seriously compromise that ability.
