Sheriff Clinton’s weekly column

As the Fourth of July weekend approaches I would like to take a moment to remind everyone that traffic accidents become more frequent for us this time of year.  With all the visitors to our area and all the summertime recreation that people are anticipating it becomes easy to be distracted while driving.  I don’t have any great words of wisdom or any real information that you haven’t already heard many times, but I would like to take the opportunity to ask everyone to be careful.   It is easy for us to forget just how dangerous an automobile can be.  When you are driving down the roadway with a 2,000 pound- plus vehicle at 55 miles per hour, it is as serious as firing a bullet from a gun.  If you are distracted, even for a moment, tragedy can occur.

This weekend we will have deputies patrolling the highways and the lake trying to keep everyone safe.  They are there to help and occasionally they may have to remind someone to slow down and be more careful.  Our interest is solely in keeping you and your family safe.

I would also like to ask for your consideration in our high traffic areas such as the Georgia Mountain Fairgrounds.  This time of year we receive a lot of visitors as well as a lot of local traffic through the campground and recreation areas.  In many of our campgrounds there are areas that share pedestrian and vehicle traffic.  I would especially ask your help in keeping these areas safe.  Some campgrounds have children playing in the same areas that vehicles may be traveling through, and it is important that we watch closely for these little ones.  You may have noticed the extra patrol of our campground areas.  Deputies are there to remind us to slow down and watch out for pedestrian traffic.

As you travel this summer, whether on vacation or simply conducting your normal daily business, it is our hope at the Sheriff’s Office that you remain safe.  We will do all that we can to protect our community by being visible on the roadways, enforcing DUI laws, and providing extra patrols of high traffic areas.  Know that we are here to help you.  If you see something that you feel needs to be addressed please let us know.

Many of you have taken advantage of our extra patrol requests while being away from home.  We are glad to offer this service to our community.  Whenever you may be out of town or simply want deputies to keep a check on your home or business simply let us know at the Sheriff’s Office by calling 706-896-4444, and we will be glad to have deputies do extra patrol and keep an eye on things for you.  You may also request extra patrol from any deputy directly.  They will fill out the request for you and turn it in to a supervisor who will ensure that each shift is made aware of your request.  You may also receive a list of dates and times your home or business was checked while you were away.

As always, please share with us any thoughts or concerns you may have.  We are here to assist you.