UHP urging safe driving for Memorial Day weekend

NORTHERN UTAH — As travelers head into Memorial Day Weekend, troopers are pleading with drivers to wear seatbelts and drive cautiously.

Wearing a seatbelt, slowing down, and making sure to get enough rest before getting behind the wheel are all safety reminders drivers can put into action to make the roads safer.

“Gonna be a lot of troopers on the road. This is one of our key times of year that we do a lot of extra enforcement,” Lt. Jalaine Hawkes with Utah Highway Patrol said.

Lt. Hawkes said says last year during Memorial Day Weekend, seven people lost their lives on the road. Seven too many.

“It’s people we know. It’s our friends. It’s our loved ones,” Lt. Hawkes said.

Over the course of the “100 Deadliest Days,” there were 98 deaths. That totals nearly one death every single day in that timeframe.

This Memorial Day Weekend, she said they typically run into a lot of situations on the road, particularly sleepy eyes behind the wheel after a long day outside at play.

“We run into people being fatigued. Being drowsy… as much as you’re gonna make the decision to not drink and drive, you need to make that decision to make sure you get enough sleep before you make the drive,” Hawkes said.

As road trips will have it, there will be some flat tires and malfunctions on the road.

Lt. Hawkes said drivers should give them space.

“There’s a lot of innocent public that is gonna be out on the side of the roads – some of those small shoulders. And so, then the rest of the drivers on the road need to keep in mind that they need to give them some space and slow it down,” Lt. Hawkes said.