CHP Out in Force for Labor Day : Holidays: Drunk drivers are the target of patrols added for the long and often deadly weekend.

The California Highway Patrol is sending out extra patrols to look for drunk drivers as thousands of Labor Day revelers take to Ventura County’s roads in search of sun, surf and back-to-school sales at the start of the three-day holiday.

Up to 60 CHP officers will be patrolling the county’s freeways and highways during a maximum enforcement period that began at 6 p.m. Friday and ends at midnight Monday, said Staci Morse, a CHP spokeswoman.

The Labor Day weekend traditionally is considered one of the deadliest for motorists, especially when warm weather encourages holiday-goers to crack open the brew, Morse said.

“It’s the last official holiday of summer and before school starts,” Morse said. “Everyone wants to have one last big fling, and unfortunately that usually involves alcohol.”

Police officials around the county report they are instructing officers to be on increased alert for intoxicated motorists and troublemakers, but do not plan beefed-up patrols.

The Ventura County Sheriff’s Department, in conjunction with the CHP, was scheduled to set up a sobriety checkpoint within Ojai’s city limits late Friday. But no other spot checks of motorists are planned for the entire weekend, police departments report.

Last year there were 31 traffic accidents on county roads, including one fatality, and 39 arrests for driving under the influence during the holiday weekend, Morse said. Over the past decade, the deadliest Labor Day holiday occurred in 1987, when three people were killed in a traffic accident, she said.

Weather forecasts calling for clear skies and warm temperatures throughout the weekend will probably add more people to the road and increase hazards faced by motorists, Morse said.

“It can be a dangerous weekend, unfortunately,” she said.

While it will be a busy weekend for CHP officers, other law enforcement agencies said they expect a slowdown in activities.

“Most people don’t use their Labor Day weekend to come to Simi Valley with their boats,” said Sgt. Mike King of the Simi Valley Police Department. “This weekend is normally real quiet because everybody is gone.”

The rush of suburbanites and Los Angeles residents fleeing from the city for temperate beach climes and campgrounds could be seen in the northbound lanes of the Ventura Freeway by rush hour Friday. All 444 campground slots at McGrath, Emma Wood and Carpinteria state beaches were taken by early Friday, said Gayla Swann, a dispatcher for the state Department of Parks and Recreation.

“The big onslaught was this morning,” Swann said Friday afternoon. “The weather has just been great, so it’s going to be a very busy weekend.”

All 460 regular camping sites at Lake Casitas Recreation Area were full by Friday afternoon, said Ranger Tim Lawson. Last-minute campers are being directed to spots in an overflow area, which will probably remain available all weekend, he said.

Beach attendance along Ventura County’s coast was light Friday, but was expected to pick up today, said lifeguard Craig Sap. Temperatures at the beach are expected to reach the low 70s, with water temperatures averaging a chilly 63 degrees. A full crew of 20 lifeguards at Ventura state beaches will be on duty this weekend, Sap said.

Elsewhere in the county, meanwhile, retailers were expecting a crush of people seeking the controlled environment of shopping malls to finish up back-to-school shopping.

“We’ve got a lot of sales going this weekend,” said Barbara Tuscher, general manager of the The Oaks mall in Thousand Oaks. Besides the chance to find bargains, the center will feature live models showing fall fashions today and Sunday to entice the indoor set, she said.

“Those people who aren’t going out of town are going to be shopping.”