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“If I wouldn't have had the seat belt on, I don't think I would be here today," says Lilli Ward, standing next to the wrecked Suburban she was driving Aug. 19. Ward says wearing a seat belt has been a habit since she was a child.

Family says seat belt saved teen driver’s life
By Chris Strunk
Last Updated: September 03, 2015

Lilli Ward's friends used to joke that if she were ever late to school, it would be because she got hit by a bus.

It's no joke.

Ward, a 16-year-old junior at Sedgwick High School who lives with her parents south of Valley Center, was driving to school Aug. 19 when a bus pulled in front of her Suburban.

The collision sent her vehicle flying into the steep ditch at the intersection of 77th North and Ridge Road.

The vehicle's airbag deployed, and Ward was wearing a seat belt — two facts that likely saved her life, she said.

"Without either one of them, I think she probably would have died," said Duane Schrag, Ward's stepfather. "… Obviously, they're critical."

Now, Ward and her family want everyone to know that it was more than just luck that saved her life.

"If I wouldn't have had the seat belt on, I don't think I would be here today," Ward said. "With the fact that I did have it on, it gave me more life that I can actually live, because I'm alive right now and having this conversation."

Ward said her parents taught her early in life that wearing seat belts as a passenger and a driver was important.

"Ever since I was little, they would say if you're going to be in a car and it's moving, then you need to be in a seat belt," she said. "That just kind of started a habit when I was little. Now, it's just a complete habit."

Ward said she hopes other drivers and passengers will do the same.

"Even if it sounds cheesy or adulty or like I'm just trying to harp on you and being your parent, make sure you always wear your seat belt," she said. "If you're in a car, put your seat belt on because you never know what could happen."

Ward wasn't expecting anything to happen on her way to school Aug. 19.

According to the Sedgwick County Sheriff's Office, Ward was driving a 1997 Suburban north on Ridge Road, and the Valley Center school bus, driven by Merrie K. Martin, 55, of Valley Center, was eastbound on 77th North. The bus pulled in front of Ward's vehicle, causing the collision.

Ward said as she approached the intersection, she saw the bus on her left.

"I know that there's a stop sign there because I drive that way every day to school," she said. "But I noticed that she was slowed down but she didn't look like she was going to stop at all."

When the bus entered the intersection, Ward tried to avoid the collision.

The front of Ward's vehicle struck the front of the bus.

Ward said a sheriff's deputy later told her that Ward's vehicle went into the air and landed in the ditch, hitting a large tree.

"I got out of the car," she said. "I was able to open the door and step out. … I was OK. The main thing I was worried about were the kids on the bus."

Superintendent Cory Gibson said 15 students were onboard. Three of the students told authorities that their heads may have struck the back of the seats in front of them. They were checked by EMS at the scene of the wreck. No student was immediately taken to the hospital.

Gibson said the students were elementary age. A few attend the intermediate school.

School officials notified parents of all 15 students. Some parents picked up their children at the scene of the wreck. Others agreed to allow a second bus to transport their children to school.

Martin was taken to St. Francis hospital with injuries described as non-life threatening.

Ward's family took her to the hospital later to be checked out. She had a small cut on her knee, bruises on her legs and chest, seat belt burns on her neck and airbag burns on her arm. She also suffered strained ligaments in her back.

The Suburban was totaled.

Ward's parents were glad she was not seriously hurt and proud that she used her seat belt.

"That's like the first thing I told her when I got to the truck and saw that she was OK," said Ward's mother, Mary Kay Schrag. "I said, ‘You're fine. You did everything you were supposed to.'"

Gibson said the bus driver was released from the hospital last week and was on medical release from work. He said he couldn't be more specific about her condition or employment status because it is a personnel issue.

"We're still determining what our next steps might be with regards to that," Gibson said.

He said two students later received medical attention and a third complained of an elbow injury. They all returned to school last week.

He said he was glad Ward was doing well, too.

"It truly is a blessing that everyone is safe," Gibson said the morning of the wreck. "As a superintendent, it's one of your worst fears."





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