As the holiday dedicated to consuming alcohol approaches, the state highway patrol is launching a Booze and Lose It campaign through March 19.
Law enforcement agencies across North Carolina are increasing patrols and safety on the streets in an attempt to thwart drinking and driving as St. Patrick’s Day celebrations take place this weeek.
“St. Patrick’s Day is well established as a time for celebration, but people should do so responsibly,” Mark Ezzell, director of the N.C. Governor’s Highway Safety Program, said in a press release. “Never get behind the wheel if you’ve been drinking alcohol. Drinking and driving can be deadly.”
According to a release from the North Carolina Department of Transportation, during last year’s St. Patrick’s Day holiday roughly 225 motorists were killed or injured in alcohol-related crashes statewide.
“The most tragic thing about these deaths is that all of them could have been prevented and their impacts avoided, if people would just do their parts by planning ahead,” Colonel Freddy Johnson, Jr., commander of the North Carolina State Highway Patrol, said in the release.
The agencies advise having a designated driver, calling a rideshare company or cab, or utilizing public transit to avoid taking the wheel after drinking.
Tips or comments? Email info@localdailymedia.com.
Want to read more from PCD? Subscribe now and then sign up for our morning newsletter, Wilmington Wire, and get the headlines delivered to your inbox every morning.
