Blackout Wednesday

BLACKOUT WEDNESDAY

“Wow, what’s that all about?”  Statistics show that binge drinking and drunk driving increase during the holidays, beginning with Thanksgiving Eve, which is now termed “Blackout Wednesday” in many cities.  That day has become high-risk for young people.

AMS encourages everyone to make a plan for getting home safely before you even leave to start your evening.  Law enforcements will be running sobriety checks along the roadsides everywhere.  Always have a designated driver assigned for the evening.  Reports show that over the holidays, starting with Halloween, that high risk drivers will increase at least 33%.

Some people persist in drinking and driving based on myths about how the body reacts to alcohol and its ability to overcome the effects.  Alcohol affects the brain and body long after you stop drinking.  Any alcohol that remains in the stomach and intestine continues to enter the bloodstream and circulate through the body.  This means judgement and coordination can be affected for hours after you have taken your last drink.

The average alcohol driver arrested on the highway has a blood alcohol concentration of .20% more than double the level for intoxication in most states.  This percentage is equivalent to 14 beers in a four hour period for a man weighing 180 lbs. 

In 1997 the world’s leading provider of alcohol testing technologies for the criminal justice was established, the Alcohol Monitoring Systems, Inc. (AMS).  In 2013 the company launched the SCRAM GPS which helps people who have alcohol in their systems to not drink and drive.  AMS employs approximately 156 people worldwide and is a privately held company located in Littleton, Colorado.   You not only have to worry about your own life, but, the life of the other people in the vehicle with you and the other people on the road. 

So, Pay Attention!  Let’s think about the other lives that can be saved by not drinking and driving.  You might not care about yourself, but, there are children, mothers, fathers, and grandparents who want to continue with their lives.  

The staff of EOS believes that everyone should have a safe and joyous season, by having someone else drive.  And if you see a friend or family member drinking, take their keys and please offer them a ride home.  So, next year, they can have a happy holiday with you, instead of you toasting to their memory.

Employee On-Boarding Specialties

Source: Alcohol Monitoring Systems, Inc.

Source: CAIP (a non-profit agency that provides alcohol education).