Nghe An handles 233 cases of alcohol concentration violations during the Covid-19 epidemic

According to information from the Traffic Police Department of Nghe An Province, during the two peak months of the Covid-19 epidemic (from February 1 to March 31), traffic safety and order in the province were stable, with no traffic jams or other unexpected incidents.

There were 38 traffic accidents in the province, killing 27 people and injuring 30 people. Compared to the same period in 2019, there was a decrease of 1 accident, 1 death, and 3 injuries.

The scene of the accident that occurred on the morning of March 27 at the Quan Bau intersection (Vinh City). Photo: Document

During the 2 months, the Traffic Police force organized 5,669 patrols and inspections with 20,405 officers and soldiers, and made administrative records of 14,530 cases. Of which, 5,396 were car drivers (1,119 were passenger cars, 2,884 were trucks, 1,036 were cars...), 8,985 were motorbike drivers. 148 cars and 2,905 were detained; at the same time, 12,287 cases were fined, and 13,679,154,000 VND was transferred to the Treasury for collection.

Of these, 1,763 cases were speeding violations, 334 cases were not obeying traffic lights, 2,567 cases were not having a driver's license, 5,353 cases were not wearing helmets, 1,570 cases were not having technical safety equipment...

Regarding alcohol concentration violations, during the two peak months of the Covid-19 epidemic (from February 1 to March 31), 233 cases were detected and handled, including 23 cars and 210 motorbikes.

Specifically, the violations: 18 car drivers and 140 motorbike drivers had blood alcohol levels below 0.25 milligrams/liter of breath; 2 car drivers and 33 motorbike drivers had blood alcohol levels above 0.25 milligrams to 0.4 milligrams/liter of breath; 3 car drivers and 32 motorbike drivers had blood alcohol levels above 0.4 milligrams/liter of breath. 2 car drivers and 3 motorbike drivers did not comply with the request to check for alcohol concentration.

The total fine for alcohol concentration violations in 2 months is 1,085,500,000 VND.

Thus, up to this point, in Nghe An province, there have been no cases of bicycles or rudimentary vehicles being fined for violating alcohol concentration.

Regarding the issue of people's concerns that blowing alcohol concentration can cause the risk of infection with the Corona virus, the leader of the provincial Traffic Police Department said that it can be said that it is very difficult to be infected with the Corona virus through an alcohol concentration meter, because according to experts from the World Health Organization, technically, the alcohol concentration meter has a one-way valve, so it can only be blown in and not inhaled.

In Nghe An, before each patrol shift, the alcohol concentration measuring machine is disinfected; the current testing process is that each person blows a tube, and immediately after testing the previous case, a new tube will be replaced to test the next case, so there will be no remaining breath of the previous person, so there is no worry of the blower being infected through the blowing process.

Vinh City Police inspect and handle violations of alcohol concentration. Photo: Document

However, at the conference on implementing solutions to prevent and combat the Corona virus epidemic organized by the Provincial Police on the morning of February 1, Major General Nguyen Huu Cau - Member of the Provincial Party Committee, Director of the Provincial Police Department directed the Traffic Police force to limit the measurement of alcohol concentration of drivers participating in traffic. But that does not mean that there will be no inspection and handling of alcohol concentration violations as many people think.

Accordingly, the implementation of the project will be temporarily suspended, but through patrolling and controlling, if detected, it will still be handled normally. The inspection will be more careful, along with the inspection process as in the past, currently each officer and soldier must wear a medical mask when contacting and working with people.

Traffic Police - Order Team, Vinh City Police give masks, combined with disease prevention propaganda to passengers waiting for buses at Bac Vinh Bus Station. Photo: Document

In the long term, based on the determination that alcohol concentration violations while driving are one of the main causes of traffic accidents. Therefore, along with patrolling, controlling, and strictly handling other violations, we will continue to direct teams, stations, and local police to inspect and handle alcohol concentration violations on national highways, provincial roads, and all roads managed by localities.