If you're planning to be on the roads this weekend, slow down, buckle up and drive sober.
That's the message South Carolina troopers are spreading as the Highway Patrol kicks off its annual "100 Deadly Days of Summer" campaign.
Safety officials call the time from Memorial Day weekend to Labor Day the "100 Deadly Days of Summer" because traffic fatalities and collisions rise as the highways become more congested with vacationers. In 2011, six fatalities were reported in York, Chester and Lancaster counties during the 100-day campaign.
Troopers were at the state Welcome Center on Interstate 77 in Fort Mill Township on Friday talking with drivers, sharing safety tips and promoting the annual campaign.
Extra troopers will be on the roads during the holiday weekend.
"All troopers are doing enforcements, including those who typically work in administrative posts," said Trooper Billy Elder. "We have laser speed enforcement on I-77. We'll also have saturation patrols throughout the tri-county area targeting DUI."
York, Chester and Lancaster counties have not had been a Memorial Day weekend fatality since 2008. "We're hoping to keep it a fatality-free weekend and keep that streak going," Elder said.
