Lowndes County will increase patrol over holiday period
LOWNDES COUNTY, Miss. (WCBI) – Schools are closing and Memorial Day Weekend is approaching, but buckle up before you hit the road.
Whether you’re in town or traveling, more patrol will be on the roads across the country over the next two weeks.
Deputies in Lowndes County are taking part in the national “Click It or Ticket” campaign.
“We’ll have extra deputies out on here on the street, coordinating with the Mississippi Highway Patrol and enforcement activities going out through the county, looking for violations of people not wearing their seatbelts,” said Sheriff Eddie Hawkins of Lowndes County.
The safety push runs from May 19 to June 1.
There will be a high deputy presence in Lowndes County to promote safety and bring awareness to the importance of wearing your seatbelt.
“We have a lot of accidents that happen here in Lowndes County, and we’re wanting to reduce the number of injuries and reduce the number of fatalities that are involved in these accidents,” said Hawkins.
Deputies will be watching for seatbelts but also checking for DUIs, speeding, and child restraint violations.
“It’s for your safety. They’re safety checkpoints. We’re going to be stopping people to make sure that they’re not DUI, making sure that people have their licenses, making sure that they have insurance for these cars,” said Deputy Gabriel Texidor.
According to the Mississippi State Department of Health, one in two people killed in motor vehicle crashes are not using seatbelts.
It’s required for all passengers and the driver to buckle up.
Mississippi Public Safety Commissioner Sean Tindell said the enforcement period is not about writing tickets but about making sure everyone makes it to their destinations safe.
“They do it to save lives. If they stop you and you’re not wearing seatbelt, they’re just trying to help and we want to see children, properly restrained, so they don’t end up in our fatality statistics,” said Tindell.
This is the sheriff’s office first year participating in the campaign.
They received a grant from the Mississippi Office of Highway Safety to help pay the deputies for working overtime during the time period.
For more information about the campaign, you can visit the Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office’s website or app.
