Campaign busts 96 local drivers for DUI

Clark County officers arrested 96 motorists for driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs during the latest “Drive Hammered, Get Nailed” campaign.

Across the state, 1,824 drivers were arrested for DUI during the campaign, which ran Aug.19 through Sept. 5.

The campaign around the same time last year brought in 110 drivers in Clark County and 2,672 statewide.

The Clark County Sheriff’s Office, Washington State Patrol and the Battle Ground, Camas, Ridgefield and Vancouver police departments held extra patrols during the campaign with help from the Clark County Target Zero Traffic Safety Task Force. Extra patrols were funded by a grant from the Washington Traffic Safety Commission.

More than 40 percent of DUI traffic deaths occur in Washington during the summer, according to the Washington Traffic Safety Commission.

Preliminary data from 2010 shows the number of DUI traffic deaths decreased by 16.5 percent compared to the previous five-year average, according to the commission.

There were 11 driver-impaired traffic deaths in Clark County in 2010, said Kristina Moy, spokeswoman for the traffic safety commission.