Police were surprised by the number of drunk drivers caught in Tofino on June 18. (Black Press Media file photo)

Police catch 13 drunk drivers during Tofino check stop

BC Highway Patrol's Integrated Impaired Driving Unit arrives to assist in Tofino and Ucluelet

Police nabbed two drunk drivers within five minutes of setting up a check stop in Tofino on June 18 and wound up impounding 13 vehicles that night.

“Another vehicle attempted to pull into a private driveway to avoid the check stop and the vehicle’s occupants, all from the Lower Mainland, were less than respectful toward the officers and the property owner onto whose property they had trespassed,” reads a media release from the RCMP.

BC Highway Patrol’s Integrated Impaired Driving Unit and the Traffic Safety Unit – Police Dog Service arrived to assist Tofino and Ucluelet RCMP with road checks and traffic enforcement between June 17-20.

Provincial travel restrictions were lifted on June 15 sending a flurry of vacation-hungry visitors into town and while police were expecting the increased traffic, the release states they were “surprised at the number of impaired drivers taken off the road.”

Along with the drunk drivers, police also issued 41 violation tickets for various offences and conducted two drug investigations.

“I am proud of the work our officers do,” Inspector Dale Carr, Officer in Charge of BCHP’s Special Traffic Operations said through the release. “As we begin to return to a pre-COVID world, I want the public to know about the work that is being done in our communities around the province to keep our roads safe from aggressive and impaired drivers as we work to make our highways safer together.”


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