At least seven people died on Georgia’s streets during that long Memorial Day holiday weekend. On Sunday lunchtime, the State Patrol reported one death in northeast Georgia, one in northwest Georgia and five deaths in the southern part of the state.
Georgian law enforcement agencies are again participating in the national campaign “Click It” or “Ticket”. State forces work with the sheriff’s MPs and police officers to enforce seat belt laws and educate the public about seat belt safety. During a press conference last week, Habersham County Sheriff’s Cpl. Kris Hall spoke on the subject.
Hall reported a crash in Turnerville in April that involved a family of six. Two adults and four children under the age of five were driving a Dodge Durango when a pickup truck spilled in front of them. Although they were traveling about 65 mph at the time of the crash, they survived because they were properly restrained.
“All of the children were buckled up properly – child seats – and they were installed properly,” Hall said. “This is just proof that seat belts save lives, not just another statistic.”
In addition to buckling up and making sure that children under the age of 8 are properly restrained, officers urge drivers to adhere to the speed limit, put down their phones, adhere to the stated speed limit, and not drink and drive.
Pedestrian safety is also an issue. According to the Road Safety Governor’s Office, preliminary data has shown that the number of road deaths has increased in 2020 both nationally and nationally. The traffic-related death reported in northeast Georgia on Saturday was of a pedestrian.
During the 2020 Memorial Day holidays, the Georgia State Patrol investigated 382 traffic accidents resulting in 256 injuries and 10 fatal accidents with 13 deaths.
This year’s 78-hour vacation trip began on Friday, May 28th, at 6 p.m. It ends on Monday, May 31, at midnight.
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White County pedestrians beaten and killed