HOLLAND (WHTC-AM/FM) — Ottawa County’s Sheriff’s Office will join other police agencies across the state prioritizing drunk driving and seatbelt enforcement with extra officers on the road and zero tolerance for lawbreakers.
On Aug. 17 and 18, and again on Aug. 24 and 25, more patrol cars will be on West Michigan roads. finding drunken drivers and getting them off the road.
The national “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over” runs from Agu. 15 through Sept. 3.
More than10,000 Americans die annually — 29 people per day, one every 50 minutes — as the result of drunken driving traffic crashes, according to figures from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control.
Ottawa County Sheriff’s announcement notes that 320 people died in Michigan in 2017 from alcohol-involved car crashes; drug-involved crashes killed 221 people.
Then on August 31, when many residents hit the road for the Labor Day weekend, deputies will be watching closely for seatbelt use.
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration data shows there were 10,428 unbuckled passenger vehicle occupants killed in crashes in the United States in 2016. If all passenger vehicle occupants age five and older involved in fatal crashes had worn their seat belts, an additional 2,456 lives could have been saved.
“It is a proven fact that seatbelts reduce injuries and save lives. It takes just an extra few seconds to buckle up,” said Ottawa County Sheriff Steve Kempker in a statement emailed to media. “This isn’t about a ticketing campaign. This is about saving lives.”
Ottawa County’s drunken driving and seatbelt enforcement campaign is funded by the U.S. Department of Transportation and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, coordinated by Michigan’s Office of Highway Safety Planning.
Learn driving safety tips at Driversed.com
