Drunk — and driving

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Driving around looking at Christmas lights is normal holiday activity, but blue lights flashing in your rear view mirror can quickly kill the festive mood.

Law enforcement officials across the state are ready to make sure people don't drink and drive this holiday season, even if jail time puts a damper on the Christmas spirit.

"We're not out there to pick on people," said Officer Merdick Sorenson, of the Fort Dodge Police Department. "We're out there to protect lives and make the streets safer."

The Fort Dodge Police Department is stepping up enforcement and cracking down on drunk driving, especially during the holiday season.

As part of the annual Drunk Driving. Over the Limit. Under Arrest. statewide crackdown, the Police Department works under a grant with the Governor's Traffic Safety Bureau through the Iowa Department of Public Safety to increase the number of officers on the roads over the holidays.

Sorenson is one of the patrol officers who works extra time during governor's safety initiatives.

"It is to put more officers on the streets which makes the streets of Fort Dodge safer for citizens who are out there being responsible and not drinking and driving," Sorenson said.

With the grant, the Police Department is able to pay up to 400 hours of additional overtime for officers to patrol the streets. Officers can take time to focus specifically on traffic violations and clues that a driver may be impaired, according to Assistant Fort Dodge Police Chief Kevin Doty.

"We want people to be safe - and that's basically our mission, to do what we can to make sure they are safe," he said.

Fort Dodge police officers have arrested 12 people for operating while intoxicated in November. So far this month, 10 people have been arrested for OWI.

"I don't really feel we have more people drinking and driving," Doty said. "I just think that through our efforts, we are catching more people drinking and driving."

Catching those impaired drivers is the focus of the crackdown.

In 2008, 11,773 Americans died in highway crashes involving a driver with a blood alcohol content of .08 or higher, according to the GTSB.

Of the 81 people in Iowa who died as a result of drunk driving, nine were during December and January.

So far in 2009, there have been no traffic fatalities in the city, Doty said.

The added enforcement is meant to keep it that way.

"We want people to be safe and we want them to enjoy the holidays and time with family and friends," Doty said. "Take responsibility for your actions. If you had too much to drink, have a designated driver, give your keys to someone sober or make arrangements before you go out."

Contact Angela Burch at (515) 573-2141 or aburch@messengernews.net