The Ohio Highway Patrol is reporting 16 people lost their lives in 16 traffic crashes during the July 4 reporting period, which began Friday, July 1 and ended Monday, July 4. Impairment was determined to be a factor in four of those crashes.
Troopers made 444 arrests for impaired driving and 239 for drug-related charges. The patrol responded to 559 crashes and made more than 33,000 traffic contacts in total. Troopers also provided assistance to more than 2,588 motorists.
In contrast, last year from July 2 through 5, a total of 21 fatal crashes killed 23 people. Of those, 12 crashes and 12 fatalities involved alcohol and/or drugs.
Motorists are encouraged to call #677 to report impaired drivers or drug activity.
