Heading out to Lake Murray this weekend? Be ready for police checkpoints

Heading out for some Labor Day Weekend fun? Make sure you’re ready for police checkpoints.

Local police departments are teaming up with the Irmo Police Department to patrol busy roadways and identify drivers “who shouldn’t be on the road,” said Irmo Police Capt. Courtney Dennis.

Patrols will check driver’s licenses, vehicle registration and insurance on Friday, according to a release from IPD.

The checkpoint will be set up on Lake Murray Boulevard in Irmo. Dennis said police will stop every car “unless it becomes a traffic problem, then we will go to random checks.”

Police will also more closely monitor traffic on Lake Murray Boulevard, St. Andrews Road, Broad River Road and Dreher Shoals Road, according to the release.

Irmo is just the latest town to tighten its patrolling in the late summer. Lexington police launched “Sober or Slammer,” an initiative to crack down on drunk driving, on Aug. 17 and it will continue through the weekend.

South Carolina has one of the worst rates of traffic deaths in the nation, and has the second-highest rate of drunk driving deaths in the United States.