Santa Barbara Police and Mothers Against Drunk Driving honor memory of drunk driving victims by lighting buildings with red Wednesday night

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – The Santa Barbara Police Department, in partnership with Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), will be honoring the memories of drunk driving victims by lighting up buildings with red on Wednesday night.

SBPD provided more information in the following press release:

SBPD & Mothers Against Drunk Driving Honor the Memory of Drunk Driving Victims

The Santa Barbara Police Department, the Southern California Office of Mothers Against Drunk Driving® (MADD), the Automobile Club of Southern California, and many other law enforcement agencies throughout the state will be illuminating their buildings in red light in honor and memory of drunk and drunk driving victims on Wednesday evening, December 6, 2023.  This momentous occasion will help highlight efforts to save lives during one of the most dangerous times of the year on our nation's roadways - the holiday season between Thanksgiving and New Year's Day.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), 13,384 traffic fatalities in 2021 were due to alcohol-impaired drivers. This represented 31% of all traffic fatalities in the United States for the year and a 14.2% increase from 2020. In December 2021 alone, 1,013 people died in alcohol-impaired driving crashes. In California, drunk driving claimed 1,370 lives.

Join SBPD and MADD as we honor and remember, in solidarity, all the victims whose lives have been forever changed by this 100% preventable crime. SBPD and MADD California are inviting individuals, families, and community partners to join us by illuminating a special place at home or a place of business in red in honor and memory of drunk and drugged driving victims this Wednesday evening.