No need to press your luck on St. Paddy's Day. Remember the safety factors of not driving while intoxicated.
Parades, shamrocks, leprechauns, and lots and lots of green beer are the trademarks of St. Patrick’s Day. Also known as the Feast of St. Patrick, the holiday is the date of death of St. Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland. People (Irish or not) across the country serve corned beef and cabbage, Irish beef stew, and colcannon potatoes. Often, there’s much imbibing of the aforementioned green beer.
St. Patrick's Day is the nation’s third most popular drinking holiday (New Year’s Eve and Mardi Gras are first and second), and it’s the first most popular for beer drinking. Whether you’re celebrating with Guinness, Kilkenny, or Killian’s Irish Red, it’s important to remember the safety factors of not driving while intoxicated, both for your own safety and others around you.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, nearly one-third of vehicle-related fatalities are the result of drunk driving. The company states that even buzzed driving is drunk driving, so if you’ve had anything to drink, don’t drive. Have a designated driver, call a friend or an Uber, or stay where you are.
Following are some serious statistics (from 2020) to keep in mind:
- 62% of fatal St. Patrick’s Day car crashes involved a drunk driver
- 33% of pedestrians killed in 2018 holiday crashes had a blood alcohol level of .08+
- 73 people were killed in drunk driving accidents over St. Patrick’s Day in 2018
How are you celebrating St. Patrick’s Day this year? Let us know in the comments.
