CUSTER COUNTY–The Custer County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO), Broken Bow Police Department (BBPD), and law enforcement agencies across Nebraska are getting ready to remind residents to buckle up as part of the annual “Click It or Ticket” campaign.
The holidays are a special time for families, friends, and co-workers to come together for travel and celebration. Yet, some of these family outings can lead to tragedy. Traffic deaths this year have increased 9% compared to last year and points to a continued need to emphasize compliance with Nebraska’s seat belt law.
This selective enforcement will be conducted from November 27 thru December 1, 2019. For many, buckling up in a vehicle is second nature. Open the door, sit down, start the car, and buckle your seat belt.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, in Nebraska, of the 175 fatalities last year, 66 % were not wearing seat belts. Deputies will be out in force, cracking down on drivers who fail to buckle up and fail to buckle up children.
According to a press release from the BBPD, the Nebraska Department of Transportation also reported that 33% of fatality accidents involved alcohol last year, which is up from 30% in 2017.
Police Chief Steve Scott said, “Our goal is to convince people to buckle up voluntarily so that eventually we can reduce the number of preventable traffic deaths to zero in Nebraska.”
As always, the Custer County Sheriff’s Office is requesting that you wear your seat belt and buckle up children as Nebraska State Law requires per seat belt violation statutes 60-6,270 and child restraint violation 60-6,267.
“We are serious about safety belt enforcement,” said Sheriff Dan Osmond, of the Custer County Sheriff’s Office. “We see far too many drivers and passengers needlessly killed or injured because they were unbuckled in a crash.”
While more people are using seat belts in Nebraska than ever before, more than half of the drivers and passengers killed in crashes in the state last year were not wearing seat belts, according to a news release.
“Wearing a safety belt is the best possible protection against being ejected from a vehicle during a crash,” Osmond said. “It’s a life-saving effort, because in real life, you do not get a second chance.”
In an October interview with KCNI/KBBN, Sheriff Osmond encouraged the public to slow down and drive defensively.
“When we talk about driving, just slow down a little bit. You know, anywhere you go in Custer County you’re maybe going to save 30 seconds, maybe a minute if you’re driving crazy so just slow down, be aware of everybody else. Drive defensively, watch out for yourself, watch out for that other person. You just see a lot of situations happen because people just go too fast. We just need to slow down, enjoy life, don’t let it go by so quickly,” Sheriff Osmond said.