Authorities caution against driving while impaired on Independence Day

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Cara Fong, 18 of La Crescenta, drives wearing a ‘drugged driving suit’ during the 100 Deadliest Days driving demonstration, put on by the California Highway Patrol, Glendale and Glendale College police depts., AAA and Ford, at the Civic Auditorium parking lot, in Glendale on Tuesday, July 3, 2018. The demonstrations for the media were set up to inform the public that no one should drive drunk or drugged and that texting while driving is illegal as well. (Raul Roa / Staff Photographer)

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Cara Fong, 18 of La Crescenta, left, and her sister Caitlyn Fong, 21, prepare to drive wearing a â€œdrugged driving suitâ€ and a â€œdrunk driving suit,’ respectively, during the 100 Deadliest Days driving demonstration, put on by the California Highway Patrol, Glendale and Glendale College police depts., AAA and Ford, at the Civic Auditorium parking lot, in Glendale on Tuesday, July 3, 2018. The demonstrations for the media were set up to inform the public that no one should drive drunk or drugged and that texting while driving is illegal as well. (Raul Roa / Staff Photographer)

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Cara Fong, 18 of La Crescenta, prepares to drive wearing a “drugged driving suit” during the 100 Deadliest Days driving demonstration, put on by the California Highway Patrol, Glendale and Glendale College police depts., AAA and Ford, at the Civic Auditorium parking lot, in Glendale on Tuesday, July 3, 2018. The demonstrations for the media were set up to inform the public that no one should drive drunk or drugged and that texting while driving is illegal as well. (Raul Roa / Staff Photographer)

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Caitlyn Fong, 21 of La Crescenta, drives wearing a “drunk driving suit” during the 100 Deadliest Days driving demonstration, put on by the California Highway Patrol, Glendale and Glendale College police depts., AAA and Ford, at the Civic Auditorium parking lot, in Glendale on Tuesday, July 3, 2018. The demonstrations for the media were set up to inform the public that no one should drive drunk or drugged and that texting while driving is illegal as well. (Raul Roa / Staff Photographer)

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Cara Fong, 18 of La Crescenta, drives wearing a “drugged driving suit” runs over a cone during the 100 Deadliest Days driving demonstration, put on by the California Highway Patrol, Glendale and Glendale College police depts., AAA and Ford, at the Civic Auditorium parking lot, in Glendale on Tuesday, July 3, 2018. The demonstrations for the media were set up to inform the public that no one should drive drunk or drugged and that texting while driving is illegal as well. (Raul Roa / Staff Photographer)

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Glendale Community College police chief Gary Montecuollo warns of the dangers of impaired driving, during the 100 Deadliest Days driving demonstration, put on by the California Highway Patrol, Glendale and Glendale College police depts., AAA and Ford, at the Civic Auditorium parking lot, in Glendale on Tuesday, July 3, 2018. The demonstrations for the media were set up to inform the public that no one should drive drunk or drugged and that texting while driving is illegal as well. (Raul Roa / Staff Photographer)

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Caitlyn Fong, 21 of La Crescenta, wears a ‘drunk driving suit’ during the 100 Deadliest Days driving demonstration, put on by the California Highway Patrol, Glendale and Glendale College police depts., AAA and Ford, at the Civic Auditorium parking lot, in Glendale on Tuesday, July 3, 2018. The demonstrations for the media were set up to inform the public that no one should drive drunk or drugged and that texting while driving is illegal as well. (Raul Roa / Staff Photographer)

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Cara Fong, 18 of La Crescenta, wears a “drugged driving suit” during the 100 Deadliest Days driving demonstration, put on by the California Highway Patrol, Glendale and Glendale College police depts., AAA and Ford, at the Civic Auditorium parking lot, in Glendale on Tuesday, July 3, 2018. The demonstrations for the media were set up to inform the public that no one should drive drunk or drugged and that texting while driving is illegal as well. (Raul Roa / Staff Photographer)

By Andy Nguyen

July 3, 2018 6:25 PM PT

Authorities have one simple message for people thinking about driving while under the influence of drugs or alcohol during the Fourth of July holiday this week: Don’t.

To hammer that point home, an impaired-driving demonstration was held on Tuesday in Glendale where volunteers got to wear special equipment simulating the effects of being under the influence of drugs or alcohol and driving through a course. The equipment involved wearing ankle and wrist weights, headphones that muffled sound or generated random beeping noises and vision-distorting goggles.

Cara Fong, an 18-year-old La Crescenta resident, said the equipment made driving incredibly difficult because it made her disoriented.

“I’ve never drove while drunk and just assumed your vision would be off and you wouldn’t see things straight,” she said. “After doing this, it’s worse than I thought it would be. It’s not worth it.”

The event was attended by several members of the Burbank, Glendale and Glendale Community College police departments as well as the California Highway Patrol.

“While we try to spread this message every year … we still experience a number of preventable traffic-collision deaths throughout the state of California,” CHP Capt. Tai Vong said.

During a four-day period surrounding the Fourth of July last year, Vong said 47 people across California died as a result of traffic collisions, three of which occurred in Los Angeles County.

In that same period, the CHP made 1,244 DUI arrests in the state. He said roughly 240 of those arrests were made in L.A. County.

To help mitigate any potential danger, authorities suggest using a designated driver, ride-share app or taxi service for transportation.

AAA will offer its Tipsy Tow service free for any Southern California resident from 6 p.m. Wednesday to 6 a.m. Thursday. Motorists can call (800) 400-4222 for a free tow and ride home up to 7 miles from their pick-up location.

andy.nguyen@latimes.com

Twitter: @Andy_Truc