The Iowa Department of Public Safety (DPS) and its Iowa Governor’s Traffic Safety Bureau (GTSB) are urging partiers this St. Patrick’s Day to find a safe ride home if you plan on drinking. Before you decide to go out and drink, line up a designated sober driver, utilize GTSB’s & AAA’s Tow to Go Program, or find another alternative ride home.

St. Patrick’s Day is one of the deadliest holidays in America. Last year, there were zero fatalities in Iowa over the St. Patrick’s Day holiday (March 17 – 20, 2016), but there were 458 crashes resulting in 756 injuries, of which 16 were serious. A majority of the serious crashes on St. Patrick’s Day happen between midnight and 6:00AM.

No matter if you choose to drink or be the designated driver – remember that wearing your seat belt will provide the most protection in the event you don’t have the “luck of the Irish” and are involved in a crash.

Together, we can make this St. Patrick’s Day holiday a safe one and again have zero fatalities.

A traffic stop Wednesday night in Creston resulted in the arrest of an Adair County man. Creston Police say 32-year old Derik Wayne Bud Pickrell, of Fontanelle, was arrested for Driving While License Denied or Revoked. He was later released from custody on a $1,000 bond.

SIOUX CITY, Iowa (AP) – Authorities say manhole covers were sent flying by explosions resulting from an underground electrical fire in Sioux City. Firefighters were sent to the scene around 6:30 p.m. Wednesday. Assistant Fire Chief Dan Cougill says the fire stemmed from a system failure and that a pressure buildup caused the explosions. No injuries have been reported. The fire knocked out power in several downtown blocks.

A hit-and-run accident in Red Oak has authorities looking for the driver of a red semi hauling a white cargo trailer. Red Oak Police say the owner of a 2006 Ford F-150 pickup reported Tuesday morning that the pickup was struck by an unknown truck and driver. Video surveillance showed that at around 10:45-a.m., the semi turned north in the 200 block of W. Oak Street into the United Farmer’s Mercantile Cooperative (UFMC) parking lot, where it struck the pickup, causing $2,500 damage. The semi then backed away and continued through the parking lot before turning east onto the 200 block of W. Oak Street. It then pulled into the Plaza Parking Lot, in the 1500 block of N. Broadway.

Anyone with information about the truck or its driver is asked to contact Red Oak Police.