The Enid News and Eagle, Enid, OK

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  • The Enid Police Department announced it will be intensifying its DUI enforcement during the holiday season. (Staff Photo by BONNIE VCULEK)

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December 8, 2012

EPD: Celebrate holidays responsibly when drinking

By Cass Rains, Staff Writer Enid News and Eagle

ENID, Okla. — Enid Police Department is urging those planning to celebrate the holiday with alcohol to do so responsibly and plan accordingly to ensure safety.

Lt. Mark Blodgett said as part of the department’s safety grant, officers will conduct intensified enforcement of DUIs.

“Intensified enforcement begins this weekend, and we’re going to have intensified enforcement throughout the new year’s holiday,” Blodgett said. “We’ll have officers out there specifically looking for drunken drivers, in addition to our officers already on duty.”

He said for many people, this time of year includes “get-togethers” that include alcohol, but the Enid Police Department urges partiers to plan responsibly and to totally avoid driving after drinking.

“Driving a vehicle while under the influence of alcohol is a risk not worth taking,” Blodgett said. “When driving drunk, you not only risk going to jail, you also risk taking the chance of being in a crash that could seriously injure or even kill yourself and others.”

If alcohol will be part of your holiday activities, Enid Police Department recommends the following guidelines for those planning a celebration:

• Plan a safe way home before the festivities begin. Designate a non-drinking driver and give that person your keys.

• If you’re impaired, call a taxi, a sober friend or family member, or use public transportation.

• If you happen to see a drunken driver on the road, don’t hesitate to call law enforcement officers.

• If you know someone who is about to drive a vehicle or ride a motorcycle while impaired, take their keys and help make other arrangements to get home safely.

“Officers of the Enid Police Department will be out both day and night this holiday season, cracking down on impaired drivers,” Blodgett said. “If you’re stopped driving a vehicle while under the influence alcohol, you will go to jail. No exceptions.”

According to Oklahoma Department of Public Safety Highway Safety Office, five people were killed last New Year’s holiday in three alcohol-related crashes.

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