Mock DUI Crash Staged In West Chester Ahead Of Prom Season

By Michelle Durham

WEST CHESTER, Pa. (CBS) -- It is prom season at Henderson High School in West Chester. The seniors celebrate on May 5th and the Junior Prom is May 12th.

But before the events begin, State Farm, Bryn Mawr Rehab and Main Line Health officials wanted to underscore the importance of not drinking and driving.

So as a reminder, they staged a mock DUI crash on Thursday.

Professional actors played the parents, while Henderson students portrayed the injured or dead.

The exercise is designed to pack a powerful punch.

The mock crash was followed by speeches by Dave Perrino and his son Dan. Dan suffered a traumatic brain injury in a DUI crash on July 1st, 2009.

"The life I had ended that day. So did Dan's. It's just a very different existence," Dave Perrino said.

"I probably had about five girlfriends when I had the accident, and now they are all gone, I have zero," Dan Perrino told the students.

Students like Scott Winter were moved by the mock crash.

"It really hit home. I knew a lot of people out there during the presentation. It just really gets you thinking about what would happen if it happened to us," Winter said.

The folks at State Farm, Main Line Health, Paoli Hospital and Bryn Mawr Rehab hope it never happens to them.