OPP urge drivers to buckle up

A terrible crash on Hwy. 401 two weeks ago serves as a reminder to all motorists that seat belts save lives.

Tomorrow, the Ontario Provincial Police will launch their annual spring seat belt campaign that urges drivers on Mississauga area motorways to do the smart thing and buckle up.

Mississauga paramedics Patrick Chatelain and Caitlin Wenckstern were hailed as heroes after they treated victims of a horrible highway crash on the 401 in Toronto.

They provided emergency care to four young men who suffered life-threatening injuries when they were thrown from a van because they weren't wearing their seat belts.

Three people in the van who were wearing their seat belts suffered mere scratches when the vehicle rolled over.

"Last year, about a third of the people killed in collisions died only because they were not properly restrained," said Sgt. Cam Woolley of the OPP's highway safety division.

"So far this year," says Woolley, "fatal collisions are down about 28 per cent on provincial roads, but as spring weather arrives, there has been a surge in high-speed crashes, many with unrestrained occupants."