Posted by CotoBlogzz
Rancho Santa Margarita, CA – The Orange County Sheriff’s Department
(OCSD) and the Avoid 38 DUI Task Force will
be deploying DUI saturation patrols and DUI checkpoints this St. Patrick’s Day
in several communities throughout the area, looking to stop and arrest drivers
who are impaired by alcohol or drugs. These DUI patrols and checkpoints
are, in addition to regularly scheduled patrol officers, all looking for the
signs of impaired drivers behind the wheel.
The
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) reports that more than
269 people were senselessly killed nationwide in crashes involving drunk
drivers during the St. Patrick’s Day holiday from 2007 to 2011. Those
fatalities were preventable
.
“When you celebrate St. Patrick’s Day, just
be smart about it. If you know you’re going to drink, whether with friends at a
pub or attending a party, designate a sober driver ahead of time or
call a taxi to make sure you get home safely,” said Sergeant Yvonne Shull of
the Sheriff’s Department Traffic Bureau. “There’s never an excuse for driving
after drinking.”
According to NHTSA, in 2011, one person was killed on an
average of every 53 minutes in a drunk-driving crash in the United
States. Most of these crashes involved drunk drivers who had blood
alcohol concentrations of 0.15% or higher, almost twice the legal limit of
0.08%.
To prevent these tragedies
from occurring, Sheriff
Sandra Hutchens recommends the following steps to having a safe and happy St. Patrick’s
Day:
Before the
festivities begin, plan a way to safely get home at the end of the night.
Before drinking,
designate a sober driver and leave your car keys at home.
If you’re impaired, use a taxi, call a
sober friend or family member, or use public transportation to get home safely.
If you see a drunk driver on the road, Report
Them! Call 9-1-1! You could save a life.
And remember, if you know people who are
about to drive or ride while impaired, take their keys and help them make other
arrangements to get to where they are going safely.
The
Task Force is funded through a grant by the California Office of Traffic Safety
through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
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