Washington police ask residents to ‘celebrate with a plan’ over Fourth of July holiday

The Washington County Sheriff's Office and Washington Police Department will be taking part in special traffic enforcement projects from July 3 to July 7, with a goal of reducing accidents and deterring violations. Far too many drivers are injured or killed while driving around July 4 and local law enforcement is going to conduct special traffic enforcement in hopes of reducing the numbers of individuals involved in traffic accidents.

Police want everyone to have a safe and happy time celebrating July 4. Their goal with the extra attention to traffic violations will be to reduce injuries. Be safe this July 4, celebrate with a designated driver and always obey the law.

Nationally, during the 2017 July 4 holiday period (the most recent statistics available) 601 people died in motor vehicle crashes, or, an average of 134 per day. During that same time there were four fatalities on Iowa roads. That is certainly nothing to celebrate.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration 60 percent of those who died in alcohol-related crashes were in vehicles involving a driver with a Blood Alcohol Content (BAC) of .15 or higher, almost two times the legal limit of .08. Law enforcement agencies across Iowa will be participating in the national Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over campaign from July 3 to July 7, 2019. In an effort to combat drunk driving officers will be exhibiting zero tolerance for impaired drivers.

Besides the possibility of serious injury and death to the impaired driver he or she is endangering the lives of anyone else in their vehicle, or anyone that they may encounter on the road. There is also a financial aspect of driving impaired. An OWI arrest can cost up to $10,000. You could lose your license, your car, and your job. You could serve jail time. Before you set out to celebrate this holiday weekend make a plan – have a designated driver, call a taxi, or other rideshare service.

The Iowa Department of Public Safety and the Governor's Traffic Safety Bureau reminds you that it is never okay to drink and drive.