Keep Streets and Sidewalks Safe for Trick-or-Treaters...

Story Number: NNS131021-25Release Date: 10/21/2013 9:37:00 PM
From Navy Personnel Command Public Affairs

MILLINGTON, Tenn. (NNS) -- Navy officials urge Sailors and their families to keep themselves and the children who will be trick-or-treating this Halloween safe.

"The scariest part of Halloween is the increase in drunk drivers on the road," said Dorice Favorite, director, Navy Alcohol and Drug Abuse Prevention. "Sailors who drive drunk or "buzzed" are not only risking serious financial and career consequences, but they're endangering the lives of children in their communities."

NADAP offers these tips for a safe, yet spooky Halloween:

* Know your limit. Refrain from drinking out of punch bowls or witches' cauldrons where the alcohol concentration is hard to determine.
* Don't try to keep up with others who are on a fast-track to becoming a zombie.
* Plan ahead for a safe ride home before you start drinking any potions or concoctions.
* Never drink on an empty stomach - candy corn doesn't count as a meal.
* Help keep trick-or-treaters safe. Don't let your friends and shipmates drink and drive.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), in 2011, 44 percent of the nation's fatalities during Halloween weekend occurred in a crash involving a drunk driver. A total of 172 people lost their lives in drunk driving-related crashes during Halloween from 2007-2011.

Males ages 21-34, or approximately 64 percent of the Navy's enlisted force, are particularly at risk of being involved in a traffic fatality as a result of "buzzed" or drunk driving. This demographic comprised nearly half of all drunk drivers who were killed on the road during the 2011 Halloween period, reported NHTSA.

Don't let your Halloween night turn deadly - keep what you've earned. For more information and to help promote responsible drinking within your command, visit www.nadap.navy.mil.