Now that summer is coming to a close, many people are having end-of-summer parties. In many cases, these parties involve barbecue and alcohol. Whether you are throwing a party yourself or attending someone else’s event, make sure that you stay safe. Here’s how:
Summer is a time for enjoying the beautiful Florida weather, experiencing the many festivals South Florida has to offer, and enjoying the sunshine. Unfortunately, drunk driving accidents in Hollywood and South Florida often increase during this time of year. As more people take vacation time and host celebrations, alcohol often becomes part of the equation. When drivers decide not to drink responsibly, the effects can be devastating.
How can you keep yourself and your family safe this summer? There are several ways to make the summer of 2015 not only fun but safe for everyone you love:
Fourth of July weekend is quickly approaching, and for most of us that means barbecues, special events, and fireworks. Unfortunately, authorities also report that drunk driving accidents in Homestead and other South Florida cities can spike around this weekend. If you’ll be driving to Fourth of July events or will be hosting your own event, make sure that you use extra caution on the roads.
Before heading out this weekend, you might also want to have a plan for getting home safely. This can include:
The month of April is Alcohol Awareness Month. This month, the National Institutes of Health wants to warn you about the dangers of alcohol to your health and safety. It’s a good time to sit down and talk about drunk driving, alcohol poisoning, and the other dangers that drinking can cause. If you have children, this is a good time to develop a “drive sober” strategy for the whole family.
Here are a few tips for ensuring that alcohol use doesn’t cause a tragic car accident in Hollywood that could affect you and your family:
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), teen drivers are over-represented in serious car crashes, especially fatal collisions. To help combat teen car accidents, the NHTSA has introduced their 5 to Drive, which are five rules to help teens stay safer on the roads:
New drivers need to focus fully on driving, especially since they are still developing their driving skills. Using mobile devices in any way – whether to talk to text – can be a big distraction that can lead to car collisions in Homestead and other communities. Studies have even shown that hands-free devices can cause distraction, so the best solution is to have a “no mobile device” rule in the car. There are apps and car technologies that automatically incapacitate cell phones while a car is moving, which can take away any temptation to check messages. According to the NHTSA, driver distraction contributes to about 10 percent of fatal teen driver collisions, so enforcing this rule is vital to keep your child safe.
Safe Kids Worldwide has released a new study showing that car accidents cause more teen fatalities than any other cause. In fact, the organization reported that about 2,500 teens die across the country each year in car collisions. In about 56% of fatality cases, the teen victims are drivers. About 44% of teen car deaths are passenger fatalities. In Miami and other cities, lack of seat belt use is a major cause of fatal injuries to teens.
So how can parents and others prevent teens from being injured in car accidents? There are a few solutions:
According to the Safe Kids Worldwide study, teens who didn’t wear seat belts said they did so because the devices were uncomfortable or because the teens felt the trip was not long enough to warrant a seat belt. In some cases, teens said they simply forgot to wear their seat belt.
Child Injuries
Florida Car Accident Lawyer Blog