The Roanoke Prevention Alliance continues support of the Roanoke Police Department’s efforts for enforcement of impaired driving laws.
Over the Labor Day holiday period (6 p.m. August 29 – 5:59 a.m. September 2) in 2014, there were 401 crash fatalities nationwide. Almost half (48%) of those fatal crashes involved drivers who had been drinking (.01+ BAC); 40 percent involved drivers who were drunk (.08+ BAC); and more than a fourth (28%) involved drivers who were driving with a BAC almost twice the illegal limit (.15+ BAC).
In 2014, approximately 1 in 5 children killed in traffic crashes (14 and younger) were passengers in drunk-driving crashes. Fifty-six percent of the time, it was the child’s own driver who was drunk.
School is starting everywhere. Ensure youth start school without tragedy as a part of their lives. If you intend to use alcohol over the Labor Day weekend, have a plan to get home safe.
The Roanoke Police Department will continue to implement ongoing saturation patrols to target alcohol-impaired drivers throughout the summer. Saturation patrols involve law enforcement deploying additional police officers to targeted roadways during select time periods to detect and apprehend impaired drivers.
The consequences of drinking and driving are serious and could include killing yourself or others, but people need to also remember the consequences can include significant trauma and financial costs, as well. Drunk drivers face jail time, the loss of their driver’s license or at a minimum a restricted license, the use of an ignition interlock system to start their car, higher insurance rates, attorney fees, court costs, car towing and repairs, and lost wages due to time off from work.
Plan a safe way home before activities:
• Before heading out, designate a sober driver and have them pick you up. Know who to call before you are impaired and have the numbers programmed into your phone: call a taxi, a sober friend or family member, or use public transportation to get home safely.
• If you know someone who is about to drive impaired, help him or her make other arrangements.
• If a friend is drunk and wants to drive, don’t let it happen.
• If you see a drunk driver on the road, contact your local law enforcement.
• For more information, contact Scott Leamon, Roanoke Police Dept., (540) 537-6804 or Ray Bemis, director, Roanoke Prevention Alliance, (540) 982-1427.
