Central New York Injury Lawyer Blog
Did you see the recent article in the Syracuse Post Standard about weather-related motor vehicle death statistics? Statistics can be pretty boring. But I found this pretty interesting.
The new study shows that SNOW, SLEET AND FREEZING RAIN cause more than 800 vehicle-related deaths each year in the U.S. And one of the highest snow-related death areas was – you guessed it – Upstate New York’s “snow belt”. Hey, if Syracuse basketball can’t be number 1, at least Syracuse is number 1 at something . . . 🙂
Lake effect snow is literally deadly. Not surprisingly, the intensity of snowfall correlated strongly with the number of vehicle deaths. Also not surprisingly, New York City has a much lower rate of snow-related motor vehicle deaths than Upstate. Onondaga County and Oswego Counties had the highest rates in the state.
What about rain? It is deadly, too. In fact, it contributes to nearly four times as many vehicle crash deaths as snow and sleet do. But that’s because it rains a whole lot more than it snows and sleets. During the 2002-2012 study period, 2,876 people per year died in rain-related U.S. car accidents.
Actually, almost none of these deaths are caused by weather conditions alone. They are caused by drivers driving too fast for those conditions. Drivers often underestimate the slipperiness of roads in rainy and snowy conditions. They lose control of their vehicles or can’t brake fast enough when a hazard appears.
So slow down! Especially in snow, sleet and rain.
Keep safe!
Mike Bersani
Email me at: bersani@mbk-law.com I’d love to hear from you!
Michael G. Bersani, Esq.
mbk-law.com Central NY Car Accident Lawyers
Michaels Bersani Kalabanka
1-315-253-3293