Celebrating the coming of a new year at New Year's Eve parties often includes alcohol. While it's all part of a good time, none of it mixes with getting behind the wheel.
That's why the Osceola County Sheriff's Office has announced it will conduct a DUI saturation patrol starting at 7 p.m. this evening, covering all areas of the county, as part of law enforcement's Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over campaign.
The patrols will continue through the night. OCSO quietly did such a patrol on Monday. Dec. 22, ahead of the Christmas travel period, and reports that three DUI arrests were made, and 56 citations were issued. Interim Osceola Sheriff Christopher Blackmon came to Osceola County fresh off three decades with the Florida Highway Patrol, so traffic enforcement is in his pedigree.
Traffic statistics show New Years Eve and New Years Day consistently rank as one of the deadliest holidays for impaired driving annually. Each year about a third of traffic fatalities in Florida are associated with impairment.
“Mothers Against Drunk Driving applauds agencies like the Osceola County Sheriff’s Office who are proactively keeping our streets safe from impaired drivers,” said Larry Coggins, Executive Director of MADD Florida.
Drivers who intend to drink this evening (or any evening, for that matter) have options to get home safely and responsibly — having a designated driver, setting up a rideshare like Uber or Lyft, or using the AAA Tow-2-Go program (Call 855-2-TOW-2-GO for a free tow within 10 miles of your location through 6 a.m. Friday) are all viable options.
If you see a suspected impaired driver, you are urged to call 911 and report a description the vehicle and the location from a place of safety.
