Law Enforcement Partnered with Gallia County Students and Businesses to Address Safety Issues

GALLIPOLIS/POMEROY- The Ohio State Highway Patrol asked for assistance from local Law Enforcement and students in an attempt to raise awareness of current trends impacting the crash pictures in Gallia and Meigs Counties. The two crash causing violations targeted were ATV usage on roadways and texting while driving.

Assistance was requested from local schools by having the student bodies compete to come up with a message designed to prevent texting while driving. The school determined the winner and how their school would be represented in a poster. The winners from participating schools were photographed with their logo and local officers. The photo and the image were placed on a poster to be handed out at their school. River Valley High School’s winning logo was “Don’t be dumb, stop your thumbs.” The winning message from Buckeye Hills was “Put the phone down, stay above the ground.”

In an effort to raise awareness about operating ATV’s on the roadway, the help of local dealerships was requested. Both Kawasaki/Suzuki Motorsports Center and Riverfront Honda participated by allowing their inventory and facilities to be photographed and used to create safety posters. The message from law enforcement is “Wear protective gear to avoid being hurt. Keep them off the road and in the dirt.”

The Gallia County Sheriff’s Office, Rio Grande Police Department, and Gallipolis Police Departments joined in the campaigns and agreed to pass out the posters at safety details and carry the messages forth in an attempt to prevent texting while driving and operating ATV’s on the roadway.

Please refer to the link below to view and download photos from the poster shoots.

http://www.photos.publicsafety.ohio.gov/p513394148