It is the start of a new year and RCMP officers on the Burin Peninsula continue to see incidents of impaired driving with two arrests so far in 2021.
At approximately 2:30 p.m., on January 2, police attended a two-vehicle collision that occurred at the intersection of Eagle Road and Route 220 in Burin. A van, carrying a family of four, was rear-ended by a car. The driver of the car, a 32-year-old Winterland man, was suspected to be impaired by alcohol and officers observed open alcohol inside the vehicle. He failed a roadside breath test, was arrested for impaired driving and was transported to Marystown Detachment where he provided breath samples that placed him above the provincial limit (between 50 – 80 mg %) but below the criminal threshold. Police seized and impounded the vehicle and issued a 7-day driving suspension on the driver. He was also ticketed under the Liquor Control Act for having open alcohol in the vehicle.
The next day, on January 3, just before 5:00 p.m., officers received information of a man operating an all-terrain vehicle (ATV) in Marystown while under the influence of alcohol. Officers located the described ATV and operator and conducted a traffic stop. The man showed signs of impairment and was arrested for impaired driving. He was transported to the detachment where he provided breath samples that were three and a half times the legal limit. The 51-year-old Marystown man was later released from custody and is scheduled to attend court at a later date. He faces charges of impaired driving, was issued a driving suspension and his ATV was seized and impounded.
Impaired driving continues to present itself as a major factor in fatalities involving motor vehicles and ATVs in Newfoundland and Labrador. RCMP NL remains dedicated to the enforcement of impaired drivers throughout the province and thanks the public for continuing to report those suspected of impaired driving.