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ST. CLAIRSVILLE -- Provisional statistics are out from the Ohio State Highway Patrol about traffic incidents during the Christmas holiday, when nine people were killed in eight crashes from Dec. 22-25 across the state.
This was the lowest number of fatalities during the holiday reporting period since 2018. In 2022, 12 people died over the holiday.
During the reporting period, troopers arrested 213 people for operating a vehicle while impaired and 21 for illegal drug offenses. Troopers also issued citations for 228 safety belt and 75 distracted driving violations. Additionally, troopers assisted 1,049 motorists on Ohio roadways.
The public is encouraged to continue using #677 to report dangerous or impaired drivers, as well as drug activity.
Locally, Sgt. Brittany Brannan of the St. Clairsville post of the Ohio State Highway Patrol said incidents were normal during the period from Dec. 22-25. At the St. Clairsville post, she said troopers completed 34 enforcements in which citations were issued.
"We handled 11 total crashes, one of which was a fatal down in Monroe County," she said, referring to an incident on Dec. 22 in which Ty Burkhart, 43, of Sardis died. Burkhart was driving a 2018 Ford Fiesta west on County Road 10 while David Stalnaker, 45, of Sardis was driving a 2020 Dodge Ram on County Road 10. The vehicles collided in a head-on crash. Burkhart was pronounced dead at the scene.
Brannan said there were also four local arrests for operating a vehicle while under the influence.
Brannan said overall traffic on the roads seemed comparable to previous years.
"Obviously it's gaining since COVID, but I would say it's a comparable trend upward on people traveling on the roadways," she said.
Brannan said the number of arrests was also comparable.
"It's actually the exact same as last year's," she said.
She noted that the 2023 New Year's holiday reporting period saw only four crashes and one OVI arrest.
"We're hoping to keep the numbers down like we had for last year with everybody trying to find a sober or designated driver for the holiday this year," she said.
Brannan noted the placement of the holiday this year.
"New Year's is on Monday, so it butts up with the weekend so you're going to have your typical weekend traffic with people traveling for the holidays and visiting family," she said. "On the weekends we already expect a high amount of traffic, which is people just traveling for visiting family and commuting on the weekend with family events going on.
"We encourage motorists to drive sober this year, always find a designated driver or use a ride-share app whether it be Uber or Lift, or obviously a taxi service. We just ask folks to drive sober, put their seat belts on and put down those phones to prevent distracted driving."