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HAY RIVER - Members of two Hay River families have become the first inductees into the NWT Survivors Club.

Members of two Hay River families are the first inductees of the NWT Survivors Club. They are, left to right, Natasha Kataluk, Alice Chambers, Susanne Chambers, Austin Howard, Shawna Howard and Amber Howard. - Paul Bickford/NNSL photo

The club is a new initiative by the Department of Transportation to recognize people who have avoided death or serious injury with the help of seatbelts, child safety seats, lifejackets, or helmets in the case of snowmobilers, ATVers and bikers.

"That's to be celebrated," said Art Barnes, the department's superintendent for the South Slave region.

Certificates were presented on March 23 to Alice Chambers and her daughters Natasha Kataluk, 17, and Susanne Chambers, 10, along with Shawna Howard and her twins Austin and Amber, both 19-months-old.

They survived separate single-vehicle rollovers in 2008.

Howard described the accident involving her family as the scariest day of her life.

"It could have been tragic," she said.

However, she had her twins, who were only six-months-old at the time, properly secured in child car seats when the family's vehicle rolled north of Enterprise.

Chambers was driving a vehicle that rolled and ended upside down in water along the side of Highway 5 about 16 km from Hay River.

She said because they survived the accident her two daughters did not become just memories.

"That's what hit me when I got home," said an emotional Chambers.

Cpl. Mike Carter of the RCMP's Highway Traffic Services called the NWT Survivors Club a "positive step forward" in promoting safety.

"An important message here today is seatbelts save lives," Carter said, noting that about 90 per cent of Canadians use seatbelts on a regular basis - a percentage that climbs to over 95 per cent for highway travellers.

In closing the presentation ceremony, Barnes expressed hope that more people will also start to wear lifejackets when boating, as drowning is a leading cause of death in the NWT.

The NWT Survivors Club is part of the Department of Transportation's Drive Alive initiative.

Nominations for the NWT Survivors Club must come from the RCMP or health care professionals.