CHILLICOTHE, OH – Ross County Safe Communities (RCSC), a coalition, coordinated by Adena Health System, is dedicated to improving traffic safety in our region by promoting and educating on the importance of safe driving. For the fourth consecutive year, RCSC is proud to partner with the Ohio Department of Public Safety and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) for its national impaired-driving, high-visibility enforcement campaign that is focused on seat belt safety and the dangers of drunk and drugged-driving.

Each year, NHTSA, Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), the Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA), and the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) share alcohol- and drug-impaired driving messages “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over” and “If You Feel Different, You Drive Different – Drive High, Get a DUI.”

According to the 2019 Community Health Needs Assessment, completed by Partners for a Healthier Ross County, accidental death is a leading cause of death. Traffic accidents are a leading contributor to those numbers.

“Accidents continue to be one of our region’s leading causes of death,” said Lt. Tim Karwatske, of Ohio State Highway Patrol’s Chillicothe post, and an active member of RSCS. “The decisions people make when they get behind the wheel of a vehicle can affect whether or not they, or someone else, makes it safely to their destination. With our campaign, featuring the dangers of drunk or drugged driving, we want to remind people to stay home, get a ride or designate a sober driver for the ride home when celebrating summer’s end.”

As part of the national and RCSC campaign, law enforcement officers will be on heightened alert for impaired drivers through the Labor Day holiday weekend, one of the deadliest times on our nation’s highways.

According to NTSA, drunk or drugged driving kills more than 10,000 people each year. In 2017, one in five children (14 and younger) who died in a crash, died in a crash involving alcohol. The Ohio State Highway Patrol reports that in 2019, 283 drivers in Ross County were arrested for impaired driving.

To learn more about RCSC, visit Ross Safe Communities on Facebook.