The Utah Highway Patrol had reason to celebrate Wednesday a third New Year's Eve came and went without a fatality on Utah's highways.
There was only one serious crash an allegedly drunk driver was involved in a rollover, the UHP added. About 1 a.m., a car going too fast for the turn from northbound Interstate 215 to eastbound Interstate 80 went into the oncoming lanes before correcting, hitting a rock in the right shoulder and rolling onto its top.
The 23-year-old driver was arrested under suspicion of driving under the influence. A subsequent breath test showed he was double the legal limit, according to UHP. The car was brand new, too: 4 hours old with 78 miles on it, UHP added in a news release.
The troopers who ran a DUI blitz in Salt Lake County stopped at least 178 drivers during the last night of 2013. Twenty-one people were arrested for suspicion of driving under the influence, including the 23-year-old, while two people were arrested under the "not a drop" law that prohibits drivers younger than 21 from getting behind the wheel with any measurable amount of alcohol in their system.
mmcfall@sltrib.com
Twitter: @mikeypanda