H. E. A. T. Grant
The Habersham County Sheriff’s Office has been awarded two state grants from the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety (GOHS) in Atlanta, recognizing its leadership in promoting safer roadways across Northeast Georgia.
Sheriff Robin Krockum announced that the department’s Highway Enforcement of Aggressive Traffic (HEAT) program will receive $166,754.40 to continue its mission of reducing impaired driving, speeding, and other high-risk behaviors on local roads.
The Habersham County Sheriff’s Office H.E.A.T Unit will use the grant from GOHS to develop and implement strategies to reduce local traffic crashes due to aggressive and dangerous driving behaviors.
The goal of the H.E.A.T. program is to combat crashes, injuries and fatalities caused by impaired driving and speeding, while also increasing seat belt use and educating the public about traffic safety and the dangers of DUI.
“Crash data shows enforcement and education of traffic laws are two of most effective countermeasures to help our state and nation reduce crashes and eliminate deaths and serious injuries on our roads,” said Allen Poole, Director of the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety. “Each life saved on our roads is one less family that will have to live with the pain of losing a loved one whose life was taken from them in a traffic crash that was completely preventable”
The H.E.A.T. grant funds specialized traffic enforcement units in counties throughout the state. The program was designed to assist Georgia jurisdictions with the highest rates of traffic crashes, injuries and fatalities with grants awarded based on impaired driving and speeding data.
“We appreciate the support of the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety in helping our agency reduce the number of injuries and fatalities on our roadways. Thanks to the continued funding of this grant, we have been able to reduce the number of traffic fatalities from 23 to 9 within the past two years’, said Sheriff Robin Krockum.
As law enforcement partners in the Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over DUI campaign and the Click It or Ticket seatbelt campaigns, the Habersham County Sheriff’s Office will also conduct mobilizations throughout the year in coordination with GOHS’s year-round waves of high visibility patrols, multi-jurisdictional roadchecks and sobriety checkpoints.
Another Traffic Enforement Grant
In addition, the Sheriff’s Office was awarded a $32,814.72 traffic enforcement grant for its role as the coordinating agency for the GOHS Northeast Traffic Enforcement Network — a regional partnership dedicated to reducing crashes and saving lives.
Habersham County Sheriff’s Office received the grant in recognition of its lifesaving work as the coordinating agency of GOHS’s Northeast Traffic Enforcement Network. There are sixteen traffic enforcement networks across the state that help enforce Georgia’s year-round safety belt, speed and impaired driving campaigns.
“This is our way of supporting the Habersham County Sheriff’s Office through its continued leadership via Coordinator Robin Krockum and the Northeast Traffic Enforcement Network,” said Roger Hayes, GOHS Director of Law Enforcement Services said. “This grant will make sure that efforts to protect the public from drunk, distracted and other dangerous driving behaviors will continue as well as recognizing network leadership and law enforcement agencies in this region for their dedication and hard work to reduce crashes and injuries and eliminate traffic deaths on our roads.”
“Crash data shows enforcement and education of traffic laws are two of most effective countermeasures to help our state and nation reduce crashes and eliminate deaths and serious injuries on our roads,” said Allen Poole, Director of the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety. “Each life saved on our roads is one less family that will have to live with the pain of losing a loved one whose life was taken from them in a traffic crash that was completely preventable”
The Northeast Traffic Enforcement Network includes 40 law enforcement agencies in 10 counties, which include Habersham, Banks, White, Rabun, Stephens, Hall, Forsyth, Franklin, Jackson, and Hart counties.
“We appreciate the support of the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety in reducing the number of serious injuries and fatalities on our roadways”, said Sheriff Robin Krockum. The coordinator in the Northeast Traffic Enforcement Network region coordinates year-round waves of high visibility, concentrated patrols, multi-jurisdictional roadchecks and sobriety checkpoints as a partner in campaigns such as Click It or Ticket, Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over, 100 Days of Summer HEAT, and Operation Southern Slow Down.
For more information on the Habersham County Sheriff’s Office’s award, contact Sheriff Robin Krockum at 706-839-0500 or email at rkrockum@habershamga.com. For more information on the grant program, call 404-656-6996 or visit www.gahighwaysafety.org.
