This holiday season the Marion County Sheriff’s Office will have additional deputies patrolling with a focus on impaired driving.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), every day, about 32 people in the United States die in drunk driving crashes – that’s one person every 45 minutes. In 2020, 11,654 people died in alcohol-impaired deaths – a 14% increase from 2019. These deaths were all preventable.
When making plans to celebrate this holiday season, keep these tips in mind to help everyone have a fun and safe celebration:
• Remember that it is never OK to drink and drive. Even if you’ve had only one alcoholic beverage, designate a sober driver or plan to use public transportation or a ride service to get home safely.
• If you see a drunk driver on the road, call your local law enforcement agency.
• Do you have a friend who is about to drink and drive? Take the keys away and make arrangements to get your friend home safely.
These additional holiday patrols are made possible by using grant dollars.
For information about the Holiday Season Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over campaign, visit https://www.nhtsa.gov/risky-driving/drunk-driving.
