July 4 Considered One Of The Deadliest Days When It Comes To Drunk Driving

Americans need to give a bit of thought to their drinking habit on the fourth of July apart from the celebrations.

Fourth of July is considered one of the deadliest days along with Christmas holidays and new year’s eve when it comes to drunk driving. It is one of those days when celebrations end up in tragedy as a result of drunken driving fatalities. Statistics show that July 4 had the second highest percent of car crash deaths, between the years 2010 and 2014, which are linked to alcohol use. The top 10 deadliest days are summarized below along with the number of deaths reported on each day:

• Out of 591 car crash deaths that were reported on January 1, 364 involved a blood alcohol level of 0.08% or more
• Of the 461 car crash deaths that took place on December 24, 191 were caused as a result of drunk driving
• 366 car crash deaths were reported on February 6 and 151 of the deaths were caused due to drunk driving
• 396 car crashes were reported on March 9, from which 161 were caused due to drunken driving
• 438 car crash deaths were reported on April 17, from which 176 were caused as a result of drunken driving
• 435 car crash deaths were reported on April 21, from which 176 were caused due to drunken driving
• 533 car crash fatalities were reported on July 3, from which 219 were caused as a result of drunken driving
• 592 car crash deaths were reported on July 4 from which 278 were caused as a result of drunk driving
• 502 car crash fatalities were reported on July 24, from which 207 were caused as a result of drunken driving
• 338 car crash deaths were reported on December 25, from which 137 involved drunken driving

Data for the above mentioned statistics was provided by the Fatality Analysis Reporting System for the years 2010 to 2014.

Drunken driving deaths saw an increase in the last couple of decades, with more than 21,000 people reported dead as a result of drunk driving in the year 1981. Ever since, a number of laws and reforms have been put in place which helped reduce the number of drunk driving fatalities by half by the year 2015. Some of these reforms included raising the legal alcohol age limit to 21, enforcing drunken driving laws more seriously, and improving car and traffic safety laws. Most of these reforms were implemented in the 1980’s and 1990’s. Advocacy groups like MADD were also founded during this time which made the issue of drunk driving a national one.

Alcohol has not only been the cause of accidents and fatalities in driving-related incidents, but it is also the cause of various other complications and issues. One of the most common health issues among alcohol users is liver cirrhosis which caused more than 33,000 deaths between the years 2010 and 2015 in the USs.

Use of alcohol continues to be one of the biggest causes of death in America. Each year, thousands of people are killed due to the use of alcohol. America needs to do a lot more if it plans to reduce or prevent alcohol related deaths.

Although a number of policy proposals are in place to help address the issue of drinking, policymakers do not take steps to act on them. As a result, thousands of needless deaths continue to take place every year, including hundreds that take place on Fourth of July.

News Source: www.VOX.com