THINKING QUICKLY SAVES LIVES ON ROAD

ALTENBURG -- It was early Sunday morning -- very, very early -- when Ruth "Rudie" Boettcher left a holiday party.

She was on Route A between Frohna and Altenburg at about 4:20 a.m. when she noticed headlights off the road ahead. Another car had flown off a dangerous curve.

Boettcher, 18, has lived in Perry County all her life. She knew Route A was infamous for the number of accidents it caused.

Only this time, she knew the victim.

It was Jacob Fiehler, a 16-year-old fellow Altenburg resident. He had left the party a little while before Boettcher did.

When Fiehler's car left the road, he was thrown outside and landed underneath the front end. By the time Boettcher reached his side, he was coughing up blood.

Fiehler's accident was one of many this holiday season. Lt. Jim McNiell, Troop E commander for the Missouri State Highway Patrol, said several people were injured on the highways over Thanksgiving weekend. Eight of them died.

There were eight more highway fatalities on Friday and Saturday and many injuries.

Highway patrolmen stay busy working accidents on every major holiday. McNiell attributes the increase to three things: drivers not paying attention to the road, driving at a high speed and drinking before driving.

The third cause is possibly the most common, he said.

"The message to not drink and drive is getting out there, but we have to deal with society's acceptance of alcohol," McNiell said. "There is the idea that you can drink and drive and it's OK as long as you don't hurt anybody."

The fact is, whether or not a drunk driver hurts someone is a matter of chance, he said. If someone is on the other side of the road when the driver crosses the center line, there will be a serious accident.

To prevent it, people who feel the need to drink at parties should bring a sober person along to drive home. If there's nobody to drive an intoxicated person home, he should be invited to spend the night or sent home in a taxi.

If he isn't, the consequences could be deadly. At the very least, the drunk driver will suffer legal problems.

McNiell cited a "zero tolerance" law passed in Missouri last year that he feels is having a positive effect on the number of underage drivers who drink.

If a driver under 21 is caught with even .02 percent blood alcohol content -- considerably less than the level of legal intoxication -- he loses his license for 30 days. For 60 days after that, he is restricted to driving to work or school.

No matter what causes accidents, other drivers may want to help the victims. If so, McNiell said, they should call *55 on their cellular phones to report accidents to the Highway Patrol.

If drivers want to do more, they should make sure help is on the way, then pull off the road and leave their car in a secure place.

Helpers shouldn't move the victims unless there is imminent danger, but they should keep the victims warm, try to stop any uncontrolled bleeding and talk to them until help arrives.

Greg Keith, a paramedic with Cape County Private Ambulance Service, said even people without medical training can be helpful if they take the above steps.

"In these days of lawsuits, a lot of people just drive by accidents without stopping," he said. "But if I'm in an accident or a family member is, I sure hope somebody stops and helps."

Rudie Boettcher followed Keith's suggested steps. After locating Fiehler, she drove to the nearest farm house and called 911. Then she went back to the scene, sat by her friend and talked to him until professional help arrived 10 minutes later.

"That was the longest wait in the world," she said. "I just kept saying, `Keep breathing. You have to make it, Buddy.'"

Fiehler was taken by helicopter to Southeast Missouri Hospital in Cape Girardeau.

Gerard Fiehler, Jacob's father, said his son is back home in Altenburg and went on a short date Monday night. He said Jacob couldn't tell him how the accident happened.

The teen had a bruised lung, three broken ribs and third-degree burns on his left ankle.