A local DUI crash prevention coalition has purchased equipment for area Highway Patrol officers in support of their efforts to keep Edgefield County’s roads safer.

The Community Action for a Safer Edgefield coalition recently provided officers with Troop Two of the SC Highway Patrol with public safety checkpoint signs and LED road flares.  The signs and flares will be used by the officers when they conduct checkpoints in Edgefield County as well as surrounding counties.

“The signs and flares will let drivers know a public safety checkpoint is ahead,” said coalition coordinator Allen Easler. “The signs and flares will also keep the officers safer as they conduct the checkpoints by making their presence more visible. Furthermore, the LED flares are battery powered and reusable versus the fire-based road flares that can only be used once.

The coalition also purchased flashlights, digital cameras, and other checkpoint-related supplies for the Edgefield County Sheriff’s Office, Edgefield Police Department, Johnston Police Department, and Trenton Police Department.

“Edgefield County recently ranked sixth in the state in the percentage of traffic crashes that were DUI-related,” Easler said. “Public safety checkpoints are a proven method to reduce DUI crashes and keep the roads safer.”

The Community Action for a Safer Edgefield coalition is composed of community members concerned with the high rate of alcohol- and drug-related traffic crashes in Edgefield County.  The coalition’s efforts are funded through a grant from the US Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration and the SC Department of Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse Services.  Cornerstone (the alcohol and drug abuse commission serving Greenwood, Edgefield, McCormick, and Abbeville counties) administers the grant.

For more information, visit www.asaferedgefield.org or contact Easler at Cornerstone at 803-637-9336.