In April 1996, the Cowlitz County Sheriff's Office instituted the Every 15 Minutes Program at Toutle Lake High School. Every 15 Minutes is an award-winning, two day program designed to discourage young people from drinking and driving. The program is presented by the members of the Sheriff's Office with assistance from other local law  enforcement agencies. It focuses on high school seniors in a classroom setting and challenges them to think about drinking, personal safety, and the responsibility of making mature decisions when lives are involved. The program's name was conceived from the fact that every 15 minutes someone in the United States dies in an alcohol-related traffic accident.

The first day of the program, two officers and a "grim reaper" go around school pulling the "living dead" students out of class (one student every 15 minutes) and posting obituaries on the wall that state the student are victims of a drunk driver accident. These students are placed in costume and are allowed to return to class, but they may not speak or take part in any school activity for the remainder of the day. A simulated death message is given to the parents of one of the students who have previously agreed to speak to the student body on how this message impacted them. The remaining officers speak in different classrooms throughout the day about drinking, driving, and making responsible decisions. At the end of the day, the living dead students rehearse a skit they will present to their classmates the next morning. Then they are bussed away to a local hotel to stay overnight, which makes it feel real to their loved ones that they are "dead."

The second day of the program starts with a slide presentation depicting the previous day's activities. The skit is presented and the selected parents speak. A guest speaker relates how a personal experience with drinking and driving has impacted their life. The last thing we do is get a commitment from the students not to drink and drive. As the program ends, there is not a dry eye to be seen. Representatives from the community and the students' families are invited to attend to show support for the students.

Every 15 Minutes is the recipient of the Governor's Traffic Safety Award for innovation in traffic safety education. As of 2005, the program has expanded to include every high school in Cowlitz County, WA.