The night before Thanksgiving is called Blackout Wednesday by health and law enforcement officials. It’s one of the most dangerous nights of the year for impaired driving nationwide, with a 37% increase in alcohol-related crash fatalities.
Upstate University Hospital trauma surgeon Anna Wu is on call in the emergency department and hopes she doesn’t have to go to work.
"One of the amazing things about trauma is the ability to get people back on their feet and get them back to normal after a terrible injury,” Wu said. “But unfortunately some injuries are forever life changing and people are just never the same again. And with a high energy mechanism like a car accident, that's unfortunately sometimes the case."
The state is raising awareness on the issue with a “Buzzed driving is Drunk Driving” campaign. Police agencies across the state will have extra patrols on the lookout for drugged or distracted driving over the holiday season.
Wu said she has seen what high speed car crashes can do.
“A lot of it is because people are traveling at high speeds, so the amount of force that injures your body is very substantial,” she said. “It's very different than, say, tripping over a kid's toy that someone left on the ground and then, you know, breaking your wrist. So a lot of these people come in with multiple injuries throughout their body. They're very severe injuries, and some organs like the brain are very fragile, and if they're damaged sufficiently, they just never recover.”
Police also be enforcing the state’s Move Over law, which requires motorists to move over a lane when approaching a stopped vehicle, as well as for road crews.
Betsy Parmley, head of the Interstate 81 Viaduct Project, said drivers should always obey the work zone speed limit.
“Even if people aren't working, it's better,” Parmley said. “You're often squeezed a little bit on those travel lanes, so there's maybe less shoulder space. Slow down."
To help ease travel, the state is suspending lane closures and bridge construction projects through Sunday.
