Infographic by Alex Tomic/The Cougar
Spring Break is approaching, and the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo has arrived, meaning many students have plans that involve a concert, cook-off or get-together with friends and family. Most likely, alcoholic drinks are also included in these plans.
On Feb. 26, a man was crossing the street at night in Midtown when a drunk driver hit him. The car tried to escape, but the driver of another vehicle he hit before hitting the pedestrian caught him.
The man suffered a broken neck as well as his wrist, shoulder and both legs, with wounds on his head and face.
He was in surgery for seven hours, and that was only to fix one leg. He still has many more surgeries to go.
He’s lucky, though. He managed to survive, and the drunken driver was caught; however, these situations don’t always have both parties walking away alive.
According to the Texas Department of Transportation, there were 24,000 impaired-driving crashes, resulting in 2,292 serious injuries and 969 deaths. 54 percent consisted of the 17-34 age group under the influence of alcohol.
Yes, it has been said repeatedly: don’t drink and drive; find a designated driver; take the keys away from your friend if you see them stumbling and slurring. Yet drunken-driving crashes continue to occur.
There are many ways to prevent this from happening. Other than assigning a designated driver or calling a taxi, you can create an operational risk management plan right before you go out.
You can search the web or use your phone to find out if there are any services that provide transportation for a day or night out. Available services include Be My DD as well as DD For Hire, each with various rates and hours.
Then, of course, there’s Uber, one of the more well-known companies. If everybody wants to drink but no one wants to be the DD, then these are some Plan Bs.
You save money for your trips, so be sure to have some spare cash and get together with your friends to make the trip home safe. Saving money for that ride could save someone’s life.
— The Cougar Editorial Board
