Delta launches anti-drunk driving program
Surrey mother Markita Kaulius lost her 22-year-old daughter Kassandra to a drunk driver just over a year ago.
She was in Ladner on Thursday morning (Sept. 13) to tell her story and said it never should have happened.
"If someone had called 911 on May 3, 2011, my daughter would still be alive today," she said at the unveiling of a new program being launched in Delta that will crack down on impaired drivers.
Seven road signs have been installed throughout North and South Delta to remind pedestrians and drivers to pick up the phone and call 911 if they suspect another driver is intoxicated behind the wheel.
Two signs have been installed along Ladner Trunk Rd., another on River Rd. north of Hwy. 99, and a fourth on 56th St. in Tsawwassen.
The Report Impaired Driving program, called Campaign 911, is a partnership between Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), the Corporation of Delta, and the Delta Police Department.
"Campaign 911 gives police a good tool to get impaired drivers off our roads," said Delta police spokesman Ciaran Feenan, adding 15 per cent of 1,740 non-fatal collisions resulting in serious injury in Delta over the past five years were alcohol-related.
"We need people to be aware and we need people to report impaired drivers on the road," said MADD Metro Vancouver president Bob Rorison.
Grieving mother Kaulius said her daughter went to a softball game, but never made it home alive. And there are thousands of Canadians who will be sentenced to a lifetime of that grief because of impaired driving, she added.
Call 911 if you suspect one of these 10 possible signs of impaired driving:
• Driving unreasonably fast, slow, or at an inconsistent speed
• Drifting in and out of lanes
• Tailgating and changing lanes frequently
• Making exceptionally wide turns
• Changing lanes or passing without sufficient clearance
• Overshooting or stopping well before stop signs or stop lights
• Disregarding signals and lights
• Approaching signals or leaving intersections too quickly or slowly
• Driving without headlights, failing to lower high beams or leaving turn signals on
• Driving with windows open in cold or inclement weather
Delta police caution drivers that suspect they are following an impaired driver to always maintain a safe distance from the suspected vehicle, always wear your seatbelt, and pull over to call 911.
What To Do If You Observe a Potential Impaired Driver
• Call 911
• State your location
• Vehicle description
• License plate number of vehicle
• Colour of vehicle
• Make and model of vehicle
• Direction of travel for the vehicle
• Description of driver
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