Saturday,
January 13, 2007
Wild Drivers in
The
ANNOTICO Report
There
are a number of Military Bases in
While
there are only about 500 American Military families at Sigonella
NAS, before strong measures were brought to bear, the military family was
involved in 2 auto accidents a DAY!!!
That
means that more than half the Military families were in an accident every year
in
US Military often means
young, gung ho, and hard drinkers. Yet the US Military warns the US Military of "the infamous erratic driver behavior of
southern Italians" :( :( :(
Sigonella Programs Dramatically Cut Car Wrecks by Americans
The Stars and Stripes
By Sandra Jontz
European edition,
Saturday,
January 14, 2007
The day Capt. Joe Stuyvesant reported for
duty as commanding officer of Naval Air Station
It wasnt
an anomaly. At the time, June
2004, military personnel and their families were averaging two accidents per
day.
That number seemed incredibly high to
me, Stuyvesant said in a recent interview. I decided to make it a
priority.
That focus contributed to an overall decrease
in the number of traffic accidents by 57 percent between 2003 and 2006. More
importantly, Stuyvesant said, accidents with injuries declined by 71 percent,
and driving under the influence incidents went down by 77.5 percent.
We took a three-way stance: we looked at
rewarding positive behavior, educating people and we wanted
accountability, Stuyvesant said.
Officials have used programs ranging from
message blitzes on radio, television and arrive
alive banners, to creative solutions, said Robert Hall, the base safety
director.
For example, the base makes no secret that
gate guards have and use their hand-held alcohol-detecting wands called the Alcoblow. In 2003, officials learned of 99 percent of the
58 DUI incidents only when there were accidents. In 2006, four of the 13 DUI
cases were discovered that way, while six were found through the bases use
of the Alcoblow.
We put Alcoblow
at the gates and let the public know, said Lt. Cmdr. Ricky Gilbert, the
assistant security officer. Were not hiding it.
But the goal isnt to catch
them. The goal is to deter them from drinking and driving.
Leaders acknowledged that only drivers coming
through the military gates might be tested. To help reach those living off
base, they pushed a designated driver program, rewarding with prizes those who
abstained from alcohol to drive friends home. And people who host parties at
their homes can check out an Alcoblow from base
security to test guests before they leave, Gilbert said.
Officials also hand out smaller, one-time use
testing devices at festivals and functions an effort that lets drivers know for sure
whether or not they should be getting behind the wheel.
Obviously, not all accidents are
alcohol-related. Before Americans are authorized the drive, they must take an
eight-hour driver improvement program, tailored to Sigonellas
unique environment, Hall said.
It covers topics from dangers of speed to
navigating roads that are often laden with potholes, streets that dont
drain and can lead to hydroplaning, and the infamous erratic driver behavior of
southern Italians.
However, officials cant just blame the Italians driving habits. More than 60 percent
of the total accidents were the fault of American drivers, Stuyvesant said.
Driving here is not like driving in the
States, where in some instances maybe you can almost go on autopilot. Here, you cant afford to do that.
You cant afford to talk on the cell phone and drive. You cant afford
to be distracted.
The bases 96-for-96 program in which sailors in commands that go 96
days without a DUI incident receive a 96-hour liberty has been so successful that too many
people are qualifying for the leave. So the base is looking for something else
to inspire safe driving, Stuyvesant said.
Now with our DUIs
so low, were looking for new incentives, Gilbert said. We
dont want that to plateau and we want the DUIs
to continue to go down.
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