THE Fatal Five message remains as important as ever, according to Warwick police officer-in-charge Jamie Deacon.

With the Darling Downs district recording 26 fatalities so far this year, Senior Sergeant Deacon is keen to get the safety message out there.

"We are geographically in the fatigue zone," he said.

"Being close to the bigger centres such as Brisbane and the Gold Coast, the temptation is to push on."

Snr Sgt Deacon urged drivers to stop and take a break and avoid distractions such as mobile phones.

"There is just no place on our roads for checking mobile phones," he said.

"It only takes a matter of seconds for an accident to happen and can literally cost your life."

With notoriously larger volumes of traffic on the road during the school holidays, Snr Sgt Deacon said this could lead to frustration.

"Take your time and wait for opportunities to over take safely."

"It's very traumatic for people to lose loved ones, especially over the Christmas period."

The Warwick policeman acknowledged the seatbelt safety message is generally followed by the public but said it was still important for people to keep an eye on young children in particular, to ensure that they haven't unbuckled their seatbelt.

With recent developments in roadside drug testing equipment, Snr Sgt Deacon noted an alarming trend in people driving under the influence of drugs.

"For example, during Warwick Rodeo weekend we had a concentrated effort on drink and drug-driving. There was not one drunk-driver, but 14 drug-drivers.

"It's an alarming statistic," he said.