MINDEN -- After a particularly deadly weekend on area highways, law enforcement officials are encouraging motorists to take extra care this Memorial Day weekend.
This weekend is one of the deadliest times of year for traffic accidents, according to the Nevada Department of Transportation.
It ranks fourth behind Nevada Day, Thanksgiving and New Year's Day.
Three people died in four separate accidents last weekend. Two of the fatalities were not wearing seat belts.
"It was coincidental," Douglas County Sheriff's Sgt. Lance Modispacher said of the number of accidents. "Once in a while, we lose somebody ... people make mistakes; they're only human."
Modispacher said that the best way to combat these accidents, aside from buckling up and not drinking and driving, is driving defensively.
"That's the best piece of advice we can give anyone," he said. "Everybody seems to get in a hurry getting to their destination, and they concentrate more on that than on what's going on around them.
"If everybody would look more at what's going on around them, it would be pretty rare to have an accident."
The Nevada Office of Traffic Safety began enforcing the "No Exceptions/No Excuses" campaign Monday.
The program, which runs through June 1, requires that any motorist stopped while not wearing a seat belt must be issued a ticket -- with no exceptions, no excuses.
The Web site of the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons offers these tips for driving defensively:
-- Expect other drivers to make mistakes at intersections. After a stop at a red light, look left and right before proceeding.
-- Never look at an approaching car's headlights. Instead, use the right edge of the pavement as a visual guide until the approaching car has passed.
-- Do not let your emotions dominate your driving.
-- Do not drive when you are tired. Pull off to the side of the road for some fresh air or stop for a cup of coffee.