The Yamhill County Sheriff’s Office will be adding extra patrols for the Labor Day Weekend holiday, in an effort to minimize and reduce the negative impact of impaired drivers on law abiding motorists. These patrols will take place starting September 3^rd and continue through the weekend. 

If you plan to host a party or attend a party where alcohol or marijuana is being served you can take some precautions beforehand to avoid what could be a deadly end to the night. 

• If you host a party and provide alcohol or marijuana, make sure to also include food and non-alcoholic beverages.  Monitor your guest’s consumption and take the keys from a guest who has had too much.
• Use public transportation or a taxi;
• Ask a friend who has not been consuming for a ride home;
• Promote the use of designated drivers and stop impaired family or friends from driving;
• Always wear your seatbelt.

If you see a suspected impaired driver please call 9-1-1 and report them.  Some signs to look for are:

• Swerving or weaving in and out of a lane;
• Stopping abruptly at traffic signs or signals;
• Making unusually wide turns;
• Driving over curbs;
• Driving with headlights off at night.

There will also be extra patrols looking for speed violations. Starting on September 3rd and continuing through the weekend, deputies will be working overtime shifts targeting speeding drivers. Their time will be paid for by the grant. The objective for these shifts is to make the highways and roads in Yamhill County safer for all drivers, to prevent death and injuries and property damage. 

While there is no way to prevent all crashes, those which occur at slower speeds generally cause few injuries or death and less property damage.