From SAFE COMMUNITIES OF WOOD COUNTY
Safe Communities announced today that there have been 11 fatal crashes in Wood County this year compared to 10 at this time last year.
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October is a month filled with traffic safety educational efforts. October 20 –26 is National Teen Driver Safety Week. Motor Vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for teens 15-18 in the United States- ahead of all other types of injury, disease, and violence. The amount of teen drivers of passenger vehicles (15-18 years old) killed in motor vehicle crashes has doubled since 2016. To combat the issue, Safe Communities in conjunction with the National Traffic Safety Agency (NTSA) offers parents and caregivers helpful tips and a framework to talk to their teen drivers about risky driving behaviors that can lead to fatal consequences.
October 20 -26 is also National Collegiate Alcohol Awareness Week. We will begin our efforts on Saturday, October 19 at the BGSU vs Central Michigan Football Game with a Sober Tailgate with Athletics. This week is designed to encourage students to choose responsibility and take the opportunity to change the culture of binge drinking on-campus and off. Wood County Safe Communities reminds everyone that it never and option to drink and drive. No matter the amount of alcohol you’ve consumed, designate a sober driver or plan to use a public transportation method to make it safely to your destination. Help us spread our traffic safety messages with the goal of lowering the number of teen fatalities as well as the number of alcohol related crashes
Last, but certainly not least is the annual Red Ribbon Week from October 23 – 31. Red Ribbon Week is an alcohol, tobacco, and other drug and violence prevention awareness campaign observed annually in October in the United States. It began as a tribute to fallen DEA special agent Enrique Camerena in 1985. According to the United States DEA, Red Ribbon Week is the nations largest and longest-running drug awareness and prevention program.
If you wish to have programming for any of these initiatives, contact coordinator Sandy Wiechman at 419-372-9353 or swiechm@bgsu.edu.
