The Avoid the 6 El Dorado County DUI Campaign will be deploying additional officers on overtime this weekend, supporting routine traffic and patrol officers and focusing on drinking driver hotspots. Police, sheriff and CHP officers will have a “zero tolerance” response toward impaired drivers who fail to use a designated sober driver.

“St. Patrick’s Day is one of the most widely celebrated saint’s days in the world, but all too often it shares that great distinction with a far lesser one – too many people are driving drunk and killing or maiming themselves and others on the road as a result,” South Lake Tahoe police Sgt. Shannon Laney said in a press release.

Last year during the St. Patrick’s Day period, there were three people killed and 96 seriously injured in traffic crashes across California involving at least one driver or motorcyclist with a BAC of 0.08 percent or higher, according to statistics compiled by the California Office of Traffic Safety.

Law enforcement officials recommend the following steps for a safe St. Patrick’s Day:

• Plan a safe way home before the festivities begin and designate a sober driver.

• If you happen to see a drunken driver on the road, don’t hesitate to call 911.

• If you know people who are about to drive or ride while impaired, take their keys and help them make other arrangements to get to where they are going safely.