(Toledo News Now) - The Ohio State Highway Patrol made more impaired driving arrests and issued more safety belt citations during this Memorial Day weekend as compared to the 2013 holiday weekend. The four-day reporting period began Friday, May 23 and ran through Monday, May 26.
In addition, preliminary statistics reveal 13 people lost their lives over the weekend, which is a decrease of five deaths when compared to 2013. Three of the fatalities were OVI-related. Two deaths occurred in northwest Ohio counties: one in Lucas and one in Wood.
Overall, compared to 2013, the OSHP
- made 757 OVI arrests, an increase of more than 7 percent
- cited 7,278 vehicle occupants for safety belt violations, an increase of more than 19 percent
- made 21,168 nonenforcement contacts, of which 4,992 were to assist motorists
In Lucas County, there were 1,690 incidents. In Erie County, there were 1,461. Sandusky County reported 1,038.