The Russellville Fire Department held a demonstration for juniors and seniors at the Russellville High School on Wednesday about the dangers of airbags and texting and talking on cell phones while driving.

Fire Chief Billy Poole brought with him an actual car, donated by the city of Russellville, which showed the students exactly what happens when an airbag is deployed.

Chief Poole loaded a dummy (Rescue Randy) in the car to better display what could happen to an actual person if they are not buckled in or are propping their feet up on the dash.

“The airbag demo is pretty cool and it’s an attention getter,” said Chief Poole who hopes the students will take with them better safety habits while driving.

Firefighters first set off an airbag on the ground to show how powerful they can be. The airbag shot up approximately 30 feet in the air, as students watched in amazement. The next presentation showed an airbag deploy in the driver’s seat and then one in the passenger's seat.

Students surrounded the car after the demonstration to see what had happened to Rescue Randy. They found that on the passenger side, where Randy’s legs had been propped up, they were now blown out of place from the impact.

Vehicle airbags deploy at 200 mph or 1/16 of a second, so always wear your seatbelt. This will keep you from getting hit with the airbag.

Did you know that if you are traveling at 55 mph that taking your eyes off the road for only two seconds your car will have traveled over 120 feet? That’s the distance of three school buses.

While it looks cool and comfortable with your feet propped up on the dash, did you know there is a huge airbag just underneath and if the driver crashes into something the bag will deploy and could kill you?