January 1st, U.S. local time, the California Highway Patrol (CHP) released law enforcement data during the New Year’s Eve (evening of December 31, 2020 to the early morning of January 1, 2021).
Compared with the previous year, the number of arrests for driving violations increased significantly during the New Year’s Eve. At the same time, the number of deaths due to traffic accidents is also on the rise.
A spokesman for the California Highway Patrol said that in the law enforcement operation that began on the evening of December 31, a total of 244 drivers were arrested in six hours, all suspected of driving under the influence of alcohol or drug driving.
In the same operation last year, the California Highway Patrol arrested them in about 30 hours of law enforcement operations. 491 people were arrested, involving dangerous driving and the number of arrests was on the rise.
In addition to drunk driving and the increase in the number of drug drivers, the fatality rate of traffic accidents in California has also increased significantly during the New Year’s Eve.
According to the data, from the evening of the 31st to the early morning of the next day, a total of 13 people died in a traffic accident, four times that of the same period last year.
One of the traffic accident occurred on the No. 405 highway. After the vehicle collided, a fire caused a fire. One person was trapped in the car and died on the spot, while the other in the same car was seriously injured.
Due to dangerous driving and the increase in deaths, the California Highway Patrol once again reminds the local people to stay at home to avoid gatherings during the festival, and stay away from alcohol and drugs, which can also reverse the surge in confirmed cases of COVID-19 in California to some extent.
New Year’s Eve Traffic Enforcement is a joint enforcement operation between the California Highway Patrol and the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration to combat dangerous driving behaviors such as drunk driving and drug driving during festivals.
