Labor Day weekend sees its fair share of drunk driving accidents
Labor Day is the unofficial end of summer and many in the greater St. Louis area have sent the season off with a bang with an epic barbecue or block party. As we usher in the fall season it is important that we do not celebrate with too much alcohol at such festivities. Labor Day weekend is a prime time for fatal car crashes in Missouri and across the nation.
The anticipated statistics on Labor Day crashes
The National Safety Council estimates that approximately 466 individuals will lose their life in car crashes this past Labor Day weekend. This is a 19% increase from the number of Labor Day auto accidents in 2020. The uptick in crashes may be attributed to the greater number of drivers on the road over Labor Day weekend and the consumption of alcohol at Labor Day festivities.
Alcohol consumption can cause severe impairment
Most people in the greater St. Louis area are aware that if you have a blood-alcohol concentration at or above the legal limit of 0.08, you are too drunk to drive. A person with a BAC of 0.08 will have impaired coordination, difficulty concentrating, short-term memory loss, poor self-control and poor judgement and reasoning abilities. It is easy to see how these effects could make it difficult if not impossible to drive safely.
However, even having a BAC below the legal limit can impair your driving abilities. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration states that a person with a BAC of 0.05 may think they are safe to drive. However, a person with a BAC of 0.05 can have difficulty focusing their eyes and could have poor judgement and coordination, making it difficult to steer their vehicle or respond to unexpected or emergency driving situations.
There may be no safe limit when it comes to alcohol and driving
As this shows, even small amounts of alcohol can impair a person’s driving abilities. If you were struck by a drunk driver this past Labor Day weekend you certainly are not alone. Many people in Missouri and across the U.S. will have been involved in an accident caused by a drunk driver this past Labor Day weekend.
Drunk driving clearly breaches a motorist’s duty of care to drive reasonably under the circumstances. If you are struck by a drunk driver and the crash caused you to suffer serious injuries as a result, you may want to explore your options for compensation including the possibility of filing a personal injury claim based on negligence.