As we inch closer to summer, dangerous driving behaviors tend to increase. Henry County Sheriff Rich McNamee says this time of year his team starts to see more dangerous tendencies on the road including increased incidents of driving under the influence, distracted driving, and speeding. According to the Iowa Department of Transportation, during the months of May, June, and July of 2018 the state had 94 crash related fatalities, which comes out to nearly 30% of the total deaths last year.

McNamee says that his deputies will be out in full force this summer to keep the roads safe, “Nobody likes to get stopped by an officer, nobody likes to get a speeding ticket or seatbelt ticket, but speed is still the number one contributing factor to crashes involving injury or death. So, it isn’t just cops out being hardcore on offenders, we realize those factors contribute to most injuries or crashes.”

As of May 14th, there have been 99 crash related deaths in Iowa, which is six more than this time last year. Of those 99 fatalities, 28% were not wearing a seatbelt at the time of the wreck.