At 3:39 a.m. on Nov. 2, the ex-Las Vegas Raiders player, Henry Ruggs, crashed into and killed Tina Tintor on South Rainbow Boulevard near its intersection with South Spring Valley Parkway in Las Vegas.

According to the New York Post, Ruggs had a blood-alcohol level of .161, which is almost double the legal limit.

This is one of the many thousands of drunk driving accidents across the U.S., with around 28 people dying due to drunk driving each day, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

The Ohio State Highway Patrol has reported 198,037 teen crashes from 2017 to 2022, 2817 of these due to alcohol.

According to the CDC, teens are one of the most prone groups to crashing even without the added impairment of alcohol which makes insurance for teens more costly according to AutoInsurance.org.

Due to the increased amount of crashes teenagers experience, it is especially important for teens to take extra precautions to stay safe. The CDC says an easy way for teens to be safer on the road is to pay attention and put all distractions away (i.e. cell phones), follow basic road safety laws (i.e. speed and red lights), and refrain from using alcohol or drugs.

Kylle Bridgeman, ‘22, says that the driving to school is enjoyable because she gets to be on her own time. “I’m on my own time. My mom used to sleep in and took too long to get ready; so I was late. Now I can leave when I want.” Another senior Johna Crenshaw, ‘22, says that she has been driving for about a year now. She started to drive because she was tired of others driving her to places. Now she can do it when she wants. The parking situation isn’t ideal for Kylle. She says, “I don’t have a parking pass so I just park on the street by Blair and Pleasant. The construction makes it worse, but I just make a spot for myself.” Johna says that depending on the day it isn’t that bad and just makes a parking spot for herself.