Historically, the fifth of May commemorates Mexico’s 1862 victory over France at the Battle of Puebla during the Franco-Mexican War. But, for many in the United States, present-day Cinco de Mayo celebrations often lead to impaired driving – and there is no victory in that.
If you are planning to partake in the festivities, keep some numbers in mind. Forty people were killed in motor vehicle crashes over the Cinco de Mayo weekend in 2015. From 2011-2015, 270 people were killed nationwide in impaired-driving crashes during the Cinco de Mayo holiday. More generally, the state of California saw 1,155 deaths and nearly 24,000 in alcohol-involved collisions in 2014. And, here in Newport Beach, we have investigated 210 DUI collisions over the past three years; those crashes have claimed the lives of four people, and resulted in injury to 302 more.
On Friday and Saturday this week, officers from the Newport Beach Police Department will be deploying specifically for the purpose of identifying and stopping impaired drivers. Additionally, every traffic and patrol officer on duty will be on heightened alert to prevent a senseless tragedy due to alcohol or drugs. High-visibility deployments like Saturation Patrols and DUI Checkpoints have been proven to lower the number of persons killed and injured in alcohol- or drug-impaired crashes. Research shows that crashes involving impaired drivers can be reduced by up to 20% when these types of deployments are routinely conducted.
In the excitement of party preparations, it’s easy to forget the most important Cinco de Mayo plan of all: designating a sober driver. Too many people are lying to themselves about the dangers of impaired driving. Some people think that they can play it by ear, and wait until they are heading home to decide whether or not they are “okay to drive”. But by then, it’s too late.
In recent years, California has seen a disturbing increase in drug-impaired driving crashes. The Newport Beach Police Department supports the new effort from the Office of Traffic Safety that aims to educate all drivers that “DUI Doesn’t Just Mean Booze”. Taking prescription drugs (particularly those with a warning on the label about driving or operating machinery) or using marijuana (especially in combination with alcohol or other drugs) and be incredibly impairing, and can result in a DUI.
As you make your Cinco de Mayo plans, we would like to point out that the California Office of Traffic Safety is offering a free mobile app – DDVIP – aimed at thanking the sober designated driver with perks and free offers at area bars and restaurants.
If you don’t designate a sober driver ahead of time, or have a solid plan for how you will get home safely, you are setting yourself up for disaster. When you drive while impaired, you run the risk of killing yourself or someone else. Even if you don’t harm anyone, the average DUI costs about $10,000… which far exceeds the cost of a ride home.
A final statistic to remember: impaired-driving deaths are 100 percent preventable.
Funding for this DUI operation is provided to Your Police Department by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety, through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, reminding everyone to ‘Report Drunk Driver – Call 9-1-1’.
