By Stephanie Gross
Staff Writer
Driving in a car with ice on the road does not make a good mix. It never does and never will.
So far this school year, there have been four days where Coppell ISD has had to close school due to inclement weather. What people are forgetting is school closes because of bad weather, therefore the roads are not safe.
On days where ice covers main roads such as Denton Tap Road, all drivers should stay off the roads at all times unless it
is completely necessary.
I know first hand how dangerous driving during bad weather can be. On Feb. 5 there was an ice storm and some snow that was passing through North Texas. We still had school that day up until fifth period when the administration began releasing students.
It turns out earlier that same morning my mom had unexpectedly gotten appendicitis and without waking my brother or me up, drove herself to the emergency room and was taken by ambulance to the hospital. Meanwhile, my dad was trying to fly home from Miami after a business trip but was stuck at the airport there because of the weather in Dallas.
Mother nature could not have picked a worse day for a ice storm, at least for my family.
Once Coppell ISD made the announcement at school that students could leave, I had to get on the phone with my dad to tell him I was going to drive home. At first, he was uncomfortable with me leaving since I am an inexperienced driver in ice. After we talked, we both realized that the only way I was going to get home was to drive myself since my mom was in emergency surgery and my dad was stranded in Florida.
I went and got my brother out of class and then we left the school. I was very nervous to drive home, but went ahead and just told myself that as long as I stayed in control and went slow I would be ok.
I had just gotten into my neighborhood when my car hit a patch of ice and skidded out of control. Luckily, my brother and I were both OK and I was able to turn my wheel the same direction that my car was skidding to get it to stop.
After that experience, I am very skeptical to get on the road when there is ice. The last thing I would want to be responsible for is my car getting damaged or damaging someone else’s. People really need to stay off the roads when there is a lot of ice, especially other teenagers because for one, we live in Texas where snow and ice is not all that common and also because it is just dangerous.
The only reason people should be on the roads is if it completely necessary. It is an important judgment call that needs to be made and safety should be the number one concern before getting behind the wheel in bad weather conditions.
