MEAD, OK -- The drowning death of a Bryan County teen is spurring one local community to action. It was July 8th when a 13 year old girl drown in a drainage culvert. Friday night community members gathered to talk about how they can help prevent a similar tragedy.

Cheyenne Hope Tippie drown when she was trapped in a culvert in Willow Springs, after flash flooding. Tonight as Cheyenne's family and community mourn the loss, they're hoping something good comes out of their grief.

"I want something good come out of this," said Ethel Miller, Cheyenne Tippie's step-mother.

Miller was one of the many Bryan County residents who spoke out, concerned another child is going to drown in a culvert similar to the one where Cheyenne lost her life.

"I want them blocked off and kept clean. I want them monitored on both sides," Miller explained.

But the potential danger of culverts wasn't the only safety issue addressed in the open meeting in Mead. Residents are also concerned about the narrow streets in the area that are difficult for emergency vehicles to navigate.

"We've got a fireman, he says they can't even get their fire trucks down there. If we have an emergency they have to go one by one. And for the ambulance to leave out they are they have to go out in a yard," Melissa Hutchinson said.

Bryan County Commissioner Monty Montgomery says widening roads is long process that begins with acquiring easements.
But simply placing a guard in front of the culvert could improve safety immediately.

"We can at least put some rebar or some type of cross bars on the large culvert in the area to take care of anything happening like this - at least temporary."

Cheyenne's family says that's where they want to start - by at least putting barriers around culverts as soon as possible, and hopefully prevent another tragedy, like the one that took Cheyenne's life.

"She would never want another child to go through that. She would never want another kid to drown," Miller said.

Commissioner Montgomery says he plans on going out again to the culvert with his foreman on Monday to see what it would take to put up a guard.