Community Corner

Don't Push Your Luck This Weekend – If You Drink, Don't Drive!

Advice from Mothers Against Drunk Driving: simple ways to prevent your St. Patrick's Day weekend revelry from turning into tragedy.

By Jody Iorns, Mothers Against Drunk Driving, SF Bay Area

St. Patrick ’s Day has become a national day of celebration. This year, , and that means that those celebrations will be more plentiful and, as a result, riskier than those held during weekdays. According to the National Highway and Traffic Safety Administration, in 2009, 134 fatalities occurred on St. Patrick’s Day alone – of those 37 percent were due to drunk drivers.

DON’T LET THIS BE YOU! If you do plan to enjoy the celebrations, create your own luck by simply planning ahead:

  • Designate a sober driver – remember, even buzzed driving is drunk driving
  • Plan to use public transportation – BART or buses – or taxis

For more information about drunk/drugged driving and prevention of underage drinking, or to donate or volunteer, please contact the San Francisco Bay Area office of Mothers Against Drunk Driving at: 925-452-8752, or email us at Bayarea.ca@madd.org.


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