Washington State Patrol troopers aren’t strangers to distracted driving incidents. But according to a series of local news reports, a trooper found something this past week that he had never thought he’d see: a driver using eight different phones to play Pokemon GO.
According to the news reports, the trooper saw a man inside of a parked car near the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport on the shoulder of Highway 518. As he stropped to check on the driver, he noticed that the driver wasn’t in distress. He further that the vehicle was also not disabled. Instead, the trooper said, he noticed that the driver was just trying to catch all the Pokemon characters possible.
As he saw a foam block holding the eight phones on the passenger’s seat, the trooper noticed that all of them had Pokemon GO running.
The officer then snapped a photo of the scene. On Twitter, he shared the image with the caption, “Driver agreed to put phones in back seat and continued his commute with 8 less distractions.”
#PokemonDistraction Sergeant Kyle Smith contacted a vehicle on the shoulder yesterday evening. This is what was next to the driver! Playing #PokemonGO with EIGHT (8) phones! Driver agreed to put phones in back seat and continued his commute with 8 less distractions. pic.twitter.com/tgOr16CRlm
— Trooper Rick Johnson (@wspd2pio) August 14, 2019
While the driver went on to his destination with fewer distractions keeping him from focusing on the road, the fact that a Washington driver had this idea and put it into action shows that distractions are still dangerous.
Distracted Driving Can Be Deadly
Drivers don’t seem to realize it at times, but distractions expose drivers to crash risks.
Because drivers become unable to respond to emergencies when they are distracted, they are more likely to crash. Just like drivers who are intoxicated or drowsy, distractions kill.
Thankfully, this incident didn’t result in any accidents. And thankfully, the trooper in this case was able to use this story to highlight the importance of not driving while distracted.
Hopefully, other drivers learn from this.
