Taking safety precautions during St. Patrick's Day weekend

DECATUR, Ill. (WAND) — St. Patrick's day may fall on Monday, but the festivals are taking place throughout the weekend.

That means you need to be extra careful about how and where you choose to celebrate.

Macon County Sheriff's Office Sergeant Scott Flannery said it's important to have a plan of how to get home if you plan on going out.

"Whether that plan is 'I'm having one beer and one beer only, and you can have as many as you'd like. And I'll be your D.D. We're going to stay at the place tonight' or, you know, there's a lot of things that you can do," said Flannery.

As a reminder, DUIs can be caused by substances other than alcohol.

"The thing with a DUI from that, you can get a DUI from prescription medication if it's affecting you. The thing with a DUI is you're driving under the influence of something, you know, whether it be an intoxicant, a drug, it may be a prescription that you've take 100 times ... If you get in the car and drive, you would be under the influence," said Flannery.

For people who choose to go out to a bar or to a party, make sure you never leave your drink unattended. You want to do anything you can to avoid someone trying to spike your drink.

"Make sure you just know where your drink is, it would take no time at all for someone to slip a thing in. That's one thing that we always tell our students or anyone who's at a bar, know where your drink is. You have to go somewhere, tell your friend to 'watch this drink for me,'" said Flannery.

As long as you are aware of your surroundings, you can help keep yourself and others safe.