Quadriplegic and unable to speak years after a crash in which alcohol was involved, Wolde Salassie Bartley locks eyes with the camera filming him in the dangerous driving documentary A Piece of the Rock as his mother administers round-the-clock care in the background.

You can only wonder whether Mr Bartley, a father of one, is trying to communicate a message to the viewer — in the only way that he can — that reckless driving will not only ruin your life but also the lives of those you love the most.

The segment of the film speaks to its central message that for every death we hear of in the media — there are more than 200 injuries that require a visit to ER including loss of limbs, paralysis and brain damage. There were close to 13,000 injuries on Bermuda’s roads between 2009 and 2015 and 75 deaths in the same period.

Mr Bartley was not even driving on the night of the crash in 2004 but he travelled with someone who had been drinking. He lost the use of his limbs due to brain injury and lost the ability to talk. His daughter, Diamond, was just two at the time of the crash — the tattoo of her name along Mr Bartley’s forearm provides the only hint of the man he was before.

The image serves as a stark reminder that Bermuda’s roads are rife with death and tragedy.

The film tackles the problem from a local perspective, which is crucial because Bermuda’s statistics are not reflective of the rest of the developed world.

According to a government Health in Review Report published in 2011, there are 28.2 road fatalities per 100,000 people in Bermuda compared with the OECD average of 9.2. It is an epidemic that has plagued the island for decades and a lack of political will over the years is highlighted as one of the major roadblocks to change.

Those members closest to the issues are interviewed in the film including Minister of Transport Michael Fahy; Senior Magistrate Juan Wolffe, EMTs, surgeons and lobbyists, as well as those directly affected by tragedy on the roads.

Surgeon and road safety expert Joseph Froncioni highlights that two of the most important solutions will be the introduction of random roadside sobriety testing and the right for police to take evidence baring samples from people involved in collisions without consent.

Politicians and legislators have pointed to the Bermuda Constitution as a legal barrier to moving forward on these matters but the overriding message is that this is a public health epidemic and the time for change is now.

Other major areas of change discussed include the introduction of a graduated licensing programme to replace the “inadequate” testing process at present. It is a move that Mr Fahy said could be a relatively quick part of the solution to achieve with a draft consultation Bill planned in July. The introduction of speed cameras was another crucial area to look at.

A Piece of the Rock pulls no punches — only five minutes in to the film, following all too familiar drone footage of Bermuda’s biggest celebrations from Cup Match to Bermuda Day — we are faced with the image of a dead body slumped on a hospital bed following a crash at the junction of Middle Road and Tee Street.

While the image shocks, it is the countless stories that follow of the people who are left behind or left to care for their loved ones that really hits home. K’la Simmons, who lost her sister Kitina to a crash, breaks down into tears saying: “I would give my arm to bring her back.”

Interviews with the EMTs are revealing — despite the countless times they see death and destruction on the roads they are still touched. They describe talking to victims when all of a sudden the victim stops breathing, having someone saying “help me, help, me” to them before seeing their life slip away.

Sped-up footage from inside an ambulance provided a sobering image — the EMTs frantically tend to the multitude of injuries on a crash victim, yet in this picture of mayhem, the victim remains motionless throughout.

A Piece of the Rock bills itself as a documentary looking into the “unspoken epidemic” on the island’s roads but going by Saturday’s screening and panel discussion, the issue does not look likely to go away quietly.

Education will be key as the film is seen at public screenings including throughout the school system. While legislative and constitutional changes will be instrumental in changing behaviour, a whole culture shift is needed to really put an end to the carnage.

The narrator in the film asks how this can be achieved and the focus of attention swings back to Wolde Salassie Bartley. He is stuck in a bed with a television for entertainment being cared for by his mother, Lauren Wilson, who says she has no time for anything but the medical tasks in hand. Running on fumes, she tells the interviewer the multitude of jobs she faces every day from administering his drugs to cleaning his room to minimise the chance of her son contracting a life-threatening infection.

It is a stark and truly intimate reminder of the consequences of driving recklessly.

Michael Dunkley, the Premier, is due to attend the next public screening and panel discussion at Liberty Theatre this Saturday from 12pm to 2pm.

There will be a screening and discussion on May 7 at 4pm at the Bermuda Underwater Exploration Institute; a screening on May 13 at 12pm at Liberty Theatre; and a screening and discussion on May 14 at BUEI

All events are free to the public but tickets must be reserved in advance on www.ptix.bm. For more information visit https://www.facebook.com/makeBermudaroadssafer/