APPLETON, Wis. (WFRV) – Appleton Police Chief Todd Thomas joined Local 5 to talk about the dangers of impaired driving, and remembering a community member who died from a suspected impaired driver.

Chief Thomas used an example from Sept. 17 where a member of the community died from a suspected impaired driver. Silia Hurula was stopped at a stoplight and was hit from behind by a vehicle that was driving over 100 mph.

Thomas said that the investigation showed the driver of the car going over 100 mph was a 19-year-old female that did mushrooms earlier in the evening.

According to Chief Thomas, Hurula was a member of the community for over 20 years. She, along with her fiancé, started the Gerber Child Development Center in Menasha. She worked with hundreds of kids.

With New Year’s Eve on Friday, Thomas said they will focus on trying to catch any possibly impaired drivers during the holidays.

It was also mentioned that marijuana, mushrooms and controlled substances are an area of growing concern.