RALEIGH – The N.C. Governor’s Highway Safety Program is
reminding everyone to buckle up while traveling during the Thanksgiving season.
GHSP partnered with the Mooresville Police Department, NASCAR driver Ross
Chastain and others this week at the North Carolina Auto Racing Hall of Fame to
launch the statewide Click It or Ticket enforcement campaign. From Nov. 25-Dec.
1, law enforcement officers across all 100 counties will increase patrols to
keep everyone safe during the holiday travel period.
“For most, Thanksgiving means community gatherings, family, friends and food
but every year, for a small number of North Carolinians, Thanksgiving means
tragedy,” said GHSP Director Mark Ezzell. “It means that somebody has to knock
on the door and tell someone that a loved one is not coming home because they
did not wear their seat belt.”
Last year in North Carolina, 495 people died in unbuckled crashes, including
five people in Iredell County where officials hosted this week’s Click It or
Ticket event.
Choosing not to buckle up is dangerous and can be expensive. Drivers in North
Carolina can face up to $187 in fines and fees if anyone in their vehicle is
not wearing a seat belt.
“Wearing a seat belt is not just a good habit, it is the law,” said Mooresville
Police Chief Campurciani. “Our goal is to make sure that everyone arrives to
their destination safely.”
Unfortunately, that isn’t always the case. Recently, Campurciani had to explain
to a 9-year-old boy that his older brother, who was unbelted, was killed in a
car crash while coming home from football practice.
“The kid was sitting on the couch with his football waiting for his brother to
play catch with him when he got home,” Campurciani said. “He’s still waiting
for his brother to come home.”
This
week’s event was held not far from the Mooresville home of NASCAR driver Ross
Chastain, who is working with the Governor’s Highway Safety Program to promote
safe driving practices.
Chastain said seat belts are so important to his livelihood he wears nine of
them to keep him safe in case of a crash.
“If one person sees this and buckles their seat belt and it saves their life,
then all of this was worth it,” Chastain said.