HONOLULU — With upcoming holiday season parties and events involving alcohol, Mothers Against Drunk Driving Hawaii is ready to launch its “Tie One On for Safety” red-ribbon campaign.
“MADD Hawaii has been asking drivers to attach our ribbons to their vehicles for 33 years of its 35-year history in the state,” said MADD Hawaii founder Carol McNamee. “The red ribbon has become the iconic reminder for people to think ahead before getting behind the wheel.”
Last year, 432 people died on Thanksgiving in car crashes nationwide, with another 1,087 killed between Christmas and New Year’s Day, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, with many of those collisions being alcohol-related.
In all of 2018, 35 people in Hawaii died in alcohol-related crashes, or 30% of the total traffic fatalities for last year.
Generally, there are more motor vehicle traffic crash fatalities during the holiday period than during non-holiday periods due to more alcohol use, increased travel time on our roadways, and excessive speeding.
A campaign kick-off is set for Thursday at Tamarind Park in downtown Honolulu.
Melissa Lau, the wife of Dr. Travis Lau, who was killed in the tragic Kaka’ako crash in January, will share her thoughts.
Other community partners have joined in to support MADD’s annual campaign, including Toyota Hawaii, DTRIC Insurance, and Uber.
“Toyota’s pursuit of creating safer roads doesn’t stop with our vehicles,“ said Glenn Inouye, senior vice president of Servco, representing all Toyota Hawaii dealers. “MADD Hawaii plays a key role in the fight against drunk and drugged driving and we want to do our part to help them bring awareness to this problem that impacts our communities every day.”
