Eureka police warn holiday drivers to plan ahead for DUI patrols
EPD is stepping up DUI patrols from June 29 through July 5, after California counted 35 holiday traffic deaths and CHP logged more than 1,300 DUI arrests last year.
The Eureka Police Department has launched a Fourth of July DUI enforcement window running from Monday, June 29 through Sunday, July 5, and officers will be watching Humboldt County roads for drivers suspected of using alcohol or drugs. Chief Brian Stephens is urging people to plan before they leave home, using a sober driver, public transportation, a ride service or a cab instead of taking chances behind the wheel.
The warning comes with hard numbers behind it. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says 2,719 people were killed in motor vehicle traffic crashes over the Fourth of July holiday period from 2020 through 2024, and 38 percent of the drivers killed were drunk. California’s Office of Traffic Safety said 579 people were killed in crashes across the United States during the 2024 holiday period, and 38 percent of those deadly crashes involved alcohol.
California’s own holiday toll has stayed high. The Office of Traffic Safety said 35 people were killed in crashes on California roads during last year’s Independence Day holiday period, while California Highway Patrol officers made more than 1,300 DUI arrests. In the agency’s 2025 holiday release, the state counted 29 traffic deaths during the previous year’s holiday period, showing how quickly the numbers can climb from one summer to the next.
For Eureka, the message is aimed squarely at drivers moving through town as beach trips, barbecues, fireworks and late-night gatherings fill the holiday week. Police say the extra patrol attention is meant to keep those local trips from ending in a crash, an arrest or an injury. The department has also said recently that suspected impaired drivers can be reported by calling 9-1-1, putting residents directly into the enforcement effort.
The local crackdown lands while DUI arrests remain an active issue in the city. Eureka police said officers made 91 DUI arrests in the first five months of 2026, compared with 93 during the same period in 2025. The department, based at 604 C Street in Eureka, is using the holiday window to push drivers to make the safer call before the keys ever go in the ignition.
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