Published on Friday, June 30, 2006
in the Tampa Bay Online

Troopers Plan Big Holiday Presence

The message is as repetitive as the white lines on a highway: Drinking and driving kills.

Through public service announcements and news stories, the mantra will be rehashed liberally from 12:01 a.m. today to midnight Tuesday.

During the holiday weekend, troopers normally assigned to administrative duties will patrol the roads.

Florida Highway Patrol spokesman Larry Coggins acknowledged that it's hard for troopers to be away from family and friends during major holidays.

But missing out on festivities isn't the hardest part.

Over the Fourth of July weekend last year, four motorists were killed in the Tampa Bay area, including two in Pasco County.

"Notification of next of kin is the hardest thing, and it's hardest on the holidays," Coggins said. "We've stood in people's living rooms with Christmas tree lights on and unopened gifts; we've crashed Fourth of July barbecues and had to inform people that someone's not coming home."

Troopers receive training on how to inform people that a loved one has died, but much is learned on the job, he said.

"Over time, you just learn how to interact with people. I've had it go smoothly, and there have been times when people destroy their house in a rage, right in front of you," Coggins said.

"People see that [patrol] car in the driveway and the hat go on. At the holidays, when they're expecting overdue family, it's very difficult."

Today, the Pasco County Sheriff's Office, the New Port Richey Police Department and highway patrol will conduct a DUI checkpoint around Congress Street, north of Massachusetts Avenue.

Through the holiday weekend, AAA Auto Club South and Anheuser-Busch are offering their "Tow to Go" program for people who need a ride home from a bar or restaurant.

People who want to use the program can call 1-800-AAA-HELP (1-800-222-4357).

Coggins said Thanksgiving and New Year's are the holidays that produce the highest number of drunken driving deaths.

During last year's Fourth of July weekend, 31 people were killed in traffic crashes in Florida; 55 percent of the deceased weren't wearing seat belts, and 42 percent of the wrecks were alcohol-related, according to the highway patrol.

This weekend, troopers will concentrate on impaired, speeding and aggressive drivers, as well as people who don't properly restrain children, the agency said in a news release.

The highway patrol says wearing a seat belt is the most effective way to save lives.

More than half of adults who die in traffic crashes nationwide aren't buckled, and 60 percent of children who die in crashes are unrestrained, the news release stated.

Coggins doesn't want to spend any time this weekend informing people that a relative has died.

"But this is what we signed up for," he said. "You just hope that somewhere you can make a difference in someone's life." REPORT DANGEROUS DRIVERS

• Motorists are asked to report impaired, aggressive or dangerous drivers to the Florida Highway Patrol or a local law enforcement agency. Dial *FHP (*347) on a cell phone.
• Motorists who need assistance from the highway patrol also are encouraged to use *FHP. For traffic and road condition reports, as well as maps and other safety tips, visit www.flhsmv.gov/fhp.
• Florida drivers also may call 511 on their cell phones for updates on traffic jams, road construction, lane closures, severe weather and travel times on interstates and major highways.