The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office has a Few Tips for Safely Ending the Summer
Summer is coming to a close and more people will be on the roads in the coming weeks. With Labor Day coming soon, family get-togethers and celebrations can increase the risk of drinking and driving. Law enforcement will be on the alert. Local Montgomery County Sheriff’s Deputy Brandon Bartoskewitz has some advice for enjoying the end of summer with safety in mind.
“Alcohol-related crashes and fatalities peak during the summer,” Bartoskewitz said. “This is mostly due to more folks traveling, being on vacation, and doing outdoor activities combined with alcohol usage.” Bartoskewitz advises that everyone should have a plan for getting home safely. “Tragedy can be avoided by a few minutes of planning,” he said. “Taxi, Uber, and designated drivers are all safe means.” A designated driver must be completely sober. “Designated driver means zero alcohol, not just the least-drunk person in the party,” Bartoskewitz said. “I encourage you to take one for the team and it’ll be someone else’s turn next time.”
There’s a lot of misinformation about sobering-up remedies. Bartoskewitz debunks the following myths about getting sober:
- Drinking coffee – “Coffee does not affect the alcohol level in the blood,” he said. “It can actually further impair judgement.”
- A cold shower – “No, this does not work,” Bartoskewitz said.
- Eating “absorbs” alcohol – “No. While eating closes the pyloric valve between the stomach and small intestines, this only slows the intake of alcohol into the bloodstream,” Bartoskewitz said. Alcohol is still absorbed in the stomach, just at a slower rate than the intestines. It does not alter the level of alcohol already in the blood.
- Various “detox” remedies – Bartoskewitz said, “These have not been proven. The substances contained therein are generally unknown, and can potentially be dangerous.”
The truth is, there are no tricks to sobering up quickly. The body rids itself of alcohol on a fixed schedule, so the only thing that will make a person sober is time.
The Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office Vehicular Crimes Unit reports that Montgomery County is the 11th most populated county in Texas and had the 9th most alcohol-related fatalities in 2015. “Our increased focus on DWI awareness and enforcement has led to an eight-year low of fifteen fatalities,” Bartoskewitz said. Montgomery County sustained one traffic fatality for every 9,142 people and one alcohol-related traffic fatality for every 36,569 people in 2015. “These numbers are down from 2010, when we had one in 6,419 for traffic fatalities and one in 22,787 for alcohol-related traffic fatalities,” Bartoskewitz said.
The rates in Harris County are one for every 12,352 for traffic fatalities and one for every 39,923 for alcohol-related traffic fatalities. “So, Montgomery County has a nearly 35 percent higher per capita alcohol-related fatality rate than Harris County,” Bartoskewitz said. Despite the low number of 15 alcohol-related fatalities last year in Montgomery County, Bartoskewitz said, “Until that number is zero, there’s no cause for celebration.”
To help combat these high numbers, Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) is getting ready for the 6th annual Walk Like MADD and MADD Dash, to be held on Saturday, October 15 from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. at Northshore Park in The Woodlands. Walk like MADD is a non-competitive community 5K walk. MADD Dash is a family-friendly 5K chipped run. Both events will raise funds for MADD in Southeast Texas.
The fundraising goal for Walk Like MADD 2016 is $60,000. Sponsorship opportunities are available and registration is open for groups and individuals who want to walk and raise money for MADD. Other ways to help include signing up as a virtual walker if you are unable to be there, making a donation, and volunteering at the events. For more information or to register visit www.walklikemadd.org/thewoodlands.