County among worst for alcohol-related vehicle accidents

By Staff
Staff Reports, Hartselle Enquirer
Fourteen percent of all car crashes in Morgan County involve alcohol, the second highest number in North Alabama.
Morgan County is second only to Madison County at 34 percent.
Gov. Bob Riley announced this week a $250,000 grant to Northwest Shoals Community College as part of an effort to lower those numbers.
The money will be used to help law enforcement agencies combat drunk driving, aggressive driving and speeding in 10 North Alabama counties, including Morgan.
The college will work with the North Alabama Highway Safety Office to coordinate an alcohol and education project in Morgan, Madison Colbert, Cullman, Franklin, Lauderdale, Lawrence, Limestone, Marion and Winston counties.
Officials said 27 percent of all fatal crashes in the 10-county region involve alcohol.
A portion of the funds will be used to purchase alco-sensors, the devices used by law enforcement officers to determine blood-alcohol content of drivers suspected of being under the influence. Some of the money will also
go to law enforcement agencies in the 10-county area to compensate them for the nearly 8,800 overtime hours needed to enforce the DUI laws.
The grant funds were made available through the National Highway Traffic
Safety Administration