PORTSMOUTH, Va. (WAVY) — Virginia recorded the ninth-biggest rise in DUI crash fatalities over the past five years, according to a recently-issued report.
The information compiled by Journo Research for AskDave.com used National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration’s data for the years 2018 to 2022. It found the percent of drivers in deadly crashes who were under the influence soared more than 44% during that timeframe.
DMV also reports that, on average, one person was killed and 11 injured every day in Virginia in 2022. More than 14,000 were convicted of DUI in Virginia that year.
“We are trending in a direction that we don’t want to be trending in in terms of DUI fatalities,” said AAA Tidewater Public Relations and Community Outreach Specialist Ryan Adcock.
AAA Tidewater is also warning that we are about to enter the 100 deadliest days of the year.
“We have our 100 Deadliest Days campaign that starts at Memorial Day and goes all the way through Labor Day,” Adcock said, “when we have historically seen especially teen driver fatalities.”
During summer months, there are more teen drivers on the road, and in Hampton Roads, we see an increase in tourists who are not familiar with our roads.
AAA encourages parents to educate their teens abut safe driving and encourages anyone drinking, using marijuana or any drug to make plans ahead of time to get home safely.
“Because when you are driving out on the roads, especially under the influences of those types of things, you’re not only putting your life at risk,” Adcock said, “but everyone that’s driving around you at risk as well.”
Many area police departments will be sending extra officers out on patrol over Memorial Day weekend.
Virginia Beach said officers will be working DUI Saturation patrols, while in Chesapeake, police there are working with neighboring jurisdictions on a Route 460-Blitz from here to Petersburg, and Newport News will also have increased patrols and checkpoints.
Virginia has some of the strongest drunk driving laws in the nation, according to DMV. First-time offenders lose their license for a year, and after a second conviction they’ll lose it for three years. If fewer than five years has passed between the first and second conviction, you will be locked up for at least 20 days.
