MIAMI (WSVN) - Florida Highway Patrol troopers will be patrolling the streets of South Florida hoping to put a stop to any traffic travel trouble this Thanksgiving weekend.
In 2015 alone, there were nearly 10,000 accidents in Florida during the Thanksgiving holiday week, resulting in 84 deaths.
Seventeen of those people were not wearing their seat belts.
7News got an inside look at what troopers are watching our for. In this case, a speeding Range Rover heading west on the 836.
“You’re maintaining your distance, you’re not speeding, you’re not texting and driving, you have your seat belt on, you’re not drinking and driving. With all those factors in place, I think that we could reduce accidents, injuries and fatalities.”
A 16-year-old, fairly new driver, who was going 90 miles per hour in a 45 mile-per-hour construction zone, just got a major wake up call.
“I really did learn my lesson,” said the driver. “It’s not gonna happen again. I don’t want to hurt anybody else. I don’t want to hurt myself, and you’re only going to get home maybe 30 seconds faster.”
Sgt. Joe Sanchez said with school out for the holiday, more young people are getting behind the wheel. “Did you know that the number one cause of death for teens is automobile accidents?” asked Sanchez.
Just this week, two Homestead-area teens lost their lives, another teen was put in critical condition, after an 18-year-old driver lost control of his car and crashed into a tree.
“I can tell you that speeding kills people,” said Sanchez.
Also this week, two vehicles collided at the intersection of 79th Street and Northwest 17th Avenue, which left the two drivers dead, and just this Wednesday morning, there was a multi-vehicle crash along the Southbound lanes of State Road 826 in Hialeah that involved 10 vehicles.
“The most important thing [this Thanksgiving] is for you to be there, sitting at that table, with your family, enjoying Thanksgiving.”
While you are on the roadways this holiday week, FHP is asking if you do notice any aggressive or impaired drivers while on the roadways, report it to them by dialing 347.
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