from the Governor’s office:

Gov. Mike Easley announced that state and local law enforcement officers will increase their presence during the Fourth of July holiday as part of the Booze It & Lose It: “Operation Firecracker” campaign. Checkpoints and stepped-up patrols will be conducted from Friday, June 27, through Sunday, July 6, across the state in an effort to remove impaired drivers from the roads.

“Law enforcement officers will be out in force, sending a strong message to motorists that drinking and driving will not be tolerated,” Easley said. “The Fourth of July holiday is one of the deadliest for highway travel and we want people to be safe by celebrating responsibly.”

Last year, 60 North Carolina motorists were involved in fatal traffic crashes during the Independence Day holiday week. Twenty-one of those fatalities were alcohol-related. Alcohol-related crashes also accounted for 411 injuries in the state during the same week in 2007.

Officers charged more than 2,100 North Carolina motorists with driving while impaired during the 2007 Booze It & Lose It:” Operation Firecracker” campaign. More than 6,173 stepped-up patrols and checkpoints were held.

For more information regarding Booze It & Lose It campaigns or for citation totals, visit the Governor’s Highway Safety Program web site.

In other words, don’t drink and drive.

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