Worst month in five years
BY BRIDGET THORESON
Journal Times | Posted: Thursday, July 3, 2008 12:00 am
RACINE COUNTY - June's fatal crash total was the county's highest in five years.
Alcohol was cited as a factor in all five crashes, according to Racine County Medical Examiner Tom Terry. With one exception, Terry said those involved had blood alcohol levels of more than twice the legal limit of .08 percent.
Terry said he typically sees more alcohol-related crashes during the summer and more weather-related crashes in the winter.
"This time of year they're driving faster and the roads are good," Terry said. "They're all partying more."
Since 1999, there have only been four other months with five fatal crashes in the county - June 2003, November 2001 and June and July 2000, according to data from the Wisconsin Department of Transportation.
June 2004 was the deadliest month in the county in the past decade, with seven people killed in four accidents. Only one other month since 1999 saw more deaths than this June - June 2000, when six people were killed.
Mary Esther Schnaubelt, project coordinator with Focus on Community, said these crashes highlight the problem of people consuming alcohol excessively.
"It's not just people driving when they're drunk, but it's getting to the point where people are so impaired that they make such bad decisions," Schnaubelt said. "It's a concern that these people were driving so drunk."
Schnaubelt said a healthy amount of consumption is one alcoholic beverage a day for a woman and two alcoholic beverages a day for a man.
The people killed in accidents in June were as follows:
* June 3: David Penkalski, 54, was struck head-on by Martimiano Montano, 39. Penkalski was killed and Montano had minor injuries. Penkalski's blood alcohol level was .095 percent, and Montano's was .178 percent.
* June 4: Jay Ladwig, 44, was walking across Interstate 94 when he was hit by a tractor- trailer. His blood alcohol level was .23 percent.
* June 17: Peter Kloc, 33, drove into a ditch and his SUV flipped when it hit a driveway embankment. His blood alcohol level was .18 percent.
* June 24: Kalyn Beronja, 18, drove into a ditch and hit a tree. Her blood alcohol level was .223 percent.
* June 27: Daniel Conner, 26, drove onto a sidewalk and struck several support cables for a We Energies electric pole, and his car rolled over. His blood alcohol level was .178 percent.
In recent years, between roughly one-third and one-half of fatal crashes in Racine County have been alcohol-related, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration. For example, in 2006, 11 of the 21 fatal crashes in the county were alcohol-related crashes.
"Drunk driving is a problem," Schnaubelt said. "We know that people need to be careful not to drive when they have consumed alcohol, because it leads to such terrible consequences."