2014 Delaware Traffic Fatality End of Year Wrap Up

Dover – As we welcome a new year and hopefully a safer year, Delaware Highway Safety officials are reporting preliminary end of year total traffic fatalities. In 2014, Delaware saw a twenty percent (20%) increase in traffic fatalities compared to 2013. Delaware experienced 101 fatalities in 2013 compared to 125 in 2014.   Within the past twelve years, the highest number of traffic fatalities that occurred in a single year in Delaware was in 2003 with 148 total traffic fatalities followed by 2006 with 147.   The lowest year was 2013 with 101 traffic fatalities.

“With nearly half (46%) of our highway fatalities resultin g from impaired driving and another 43% of those fatalities stemming from a failure to wear a seatbelt, the tragedy is that these deaths were preventable. The increase in highway fatalities over the past year is quite concerning as our motorists need to understand the consequences of their action,” said Lewis D. Schiliro, Secretary of Safety and Homeland Security.

Impairment by alcohol and other drugs continues to be a major factor in overall traffic crashes and fatalities. Alcohol and drug related fatalities made up forty-seven percent (47%) of the total motor vehicle crash fatalities, This is a slight increase from 2013. The major increases in fatalities involved motor vehicle occupants involved in traffic crashes as compared to other highway users, including pedestrians and motorcyclists.   In addition, tragically there were twelve crashes in which more than one person was killed. Contributing factors to the multiple fatality crashes included speed and/or impaired driving.

New Year’s Eve signaled the end of the 2014 Checkpoint Strikeforce and Safe Family Holiday campaigns. With the 12 DUI arrests from New Year’s Eve, that brings the total number of people arrested for DUI in Delaware to 4,086 in 2014, down from 2013 in which 4,249 persons were arrests for DUI statewide.

“The Office of Highway Safety remains committed to implementing sound initiatives designed to encourage safer driving on Delaware roads,” said Jana Simpler, director of the Office of Highway Safety. “We will continue to work with our safety partners to develop campaigns to protect all motorists on our roads.”

Seat belt use has increased slightly across Delaware last year. Delaware’s seat belt use rate is currently ninety-two percent (92%) compared to the national seat belt use rate of eighty-seven percent (87%). Motorcycle fatalities decreased twenty-five percent (25%) from 2013 to 2014. In 2013, twenty motorcyclists lost their lives on Delaware roads and in 2014, that number was fifteen. Pedestrian and bicycle fatalities both saw a slight increase from 2013. There were three bicycle fatalities in 2014 compared to two in 2013. Pedestrian fatalities continue to be a traffic issue with seven occurring in December 2014 alone. There were twenty-seven pedestrian fatalities last year compared to twenty-six the year before. Delaware has previously focused on aggressive driving crashes as a whole but has now turned the focus to speed, the predominate aggressive driving crash factor. Speed has contributed to 44 of the 112 fatal crashes in 2014.

“We will continue our statewide education and outreach efforts in 2015 to make pedestrians aware of safe walking and crossing practices to try and curb the pedestrian safety issues at hand in Delaware,” said Alison Kirk, community relations officer for the Delaware Office of Highway Safety.

As 2015 begins, OHS will conduct its first traffic safety mobilization of the new year focusing on unrestrained and improperly restrained occupants in vehicles, as well as speeding drivers. Beginning January 16, state and local law enforcement agencies across the state will be conducting overtime saturation patrols after 2:00 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday when this crash problem is at its highest. Examples of improperly worn seat belts are those that are put behind the back or under the arm.  For a seat belt to be effective and save a life, it must be worn properly with the lap belt low and snug across the hips and the shoulder harness worn across the shoulder and chest with minimal slack.

For more information visit our website for updates at www.ohs.delaware.gov, follow us on Twitter @DEHighwaySafe, , or like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ArriveAliveDE.


You Are Not Invincible

Crossing the Line video released for Teen Driver Safety Week

Dover- Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for teens in the US. During Teen Driver Safety Week (Oct 19-25), the Delaware Teen Driver Task Force released a video titled “Crossing the Line”. The video tells the story of a 2012 fatal crash involving 17 year-old Andre Smith who was a passenger in a speeding vehicle driven by 19 year old driver Mar’Kese Marshall-Horsey. Andre Smith was killed in the crash on April 12, 2012 on Route 896 in Middletown.

Andre Smith was a high school senior and star football player at Appoquinimink High School and was to graduate June 13th, 2012. Unfortunately Andre did not make it to graduation day. After spending the day with friends and on the way home, Andre was riding in the passenger seat when the driver was speeding and lost control of his SUV, swearing into oncoming traffic. The passenger side was struck by another large vehicle, killing Andre instantly.

Speed was one of the contributing factors in this fatal incident said Sean Lugg, Deputy Attorney General for the Delaware Department of Justice. “If it wasn’t for the speed, this collision would not have happened.”

Between 2011 and 2013, drivers aged 19 years and under were responsible for the most speed related injury crashes (22%) in Delaware.  Male drivers accounted for two-thirds (2/3) of those crashes. Kevin M. Bradley M.D., Associate Medical Director of Trauma at Christiana Care Health System, believes young folks are prone to crashes because there is a sense of invincibility and something bad won’t happen to them. “Speed is a factor in injury, because when traveling at a high rate of speed, you are more prone to get into a crash and following that crash you are more likely to have more severe injuries,” Dr. Bradley said.

Nineteen year old Mar’Kese Marshall-Horsey was the driver in Andre Smith’s fatal crash. He was charged with the reckless killing of his friend. “I lost everything; I lost everything and everybody,” said Marshall-Horsey. “One accident put everything out the window.”

The driver is currently serving a 5-year prison term at Howard Young Correctional Facility as a result of his actions that lead to the fatal crash.

“Crossing the Line” documents the consequences that many have suffered as a result of this tragic crash and will also become part of the revised Driver’s Education curriculum to be distributed to all drivers’ education teachers in the State of Delaware.

The video can be viewed and shared on the Office of Highway Safety Arrive Alive DE YouTube channel http://youtu.be/RLiFdKFOkpU.

 


Highway Safety Officials Urge Caution After Four Fatal Crashes Occur in One Weekend

Dover –Four fatal crashes occurred on Delaware roadways last weekend that claimed the lives of 5 individuals. The fatal crashes involved a motorcycle, scooter, and 2 motor vehicles.

A variety of factors were at work in the crashes according to State Police reports and all are still under investigation.  This brings the number of people killed on Delaware roads since January 1st to 28, compared to 20 at this time last year.

“As we head into summer we will see an increase in traffic with families traveling for vacations and holidays. We cannot stress enough how important it is to be cautious every moment you are behind the wheel,” said Jana Simpler, Director for the Delaware Office of Highway Safety (OHS).  “Please slow down, take your time, limit your distractions, and never drive after drinking.”

The Office of Highway Safety has conducted several traffic safety enforcement and education campaigns this year and has planned additional enforcement and educational mobilizations that will target speeding, occupant protection, impaired driving, motorcycle, and pedestrian laws as follows;

Motorcycle mobilization;

April 21-May 2; June 23-28; July 7-12; August 4-9; September 11-15

Speed mobilization;

May 1-10; July 1-12; August 7-9; September 2-13

Pedestrian mobilization;

May 8-16; June 12-27; July 10-25; August 7-29; September 4-13

Seat belt mobilization;

May 12-26; June 6-19; July 18-31

Impaired driving mobilization;

May 23-26; July 18-August 2; July 25-August 2; August 15-September 1

The easiest way to reduce the risk of being involved in a crash is to practice safe driving behaviors.  No matter how long you have been driving, or if you just started to drive, here are some driving tips that will help you and your passengers to arrive alive.

Driving Tips

1)      Slow down- research by the European Road Safety Observatory has shown that for every mile per hour you drive, the likelihood of being in a crash increases by four to five percent. At higher speeds, the risk increases much more quickly.

2)      Never drive impaired- even 1 alcohol beverage can affect your motor skills and cause delayed reaction or blurred vision.

3)      Put the phone down- putting your attention to the cell phone call, text, tweet, or post behind the wheel can delay reaction times by as much as 20 percent.

4)      Always buckle up- when worn properly, seat belts can prevent you from being thrown around the inside of a crashing vehicle or, worse, thrown through the windshield or completely out of the vehicle.

5)      Don’t drive drowsy- just being a little drowsy is enough to increase your risk of being involved in a crash. Drowsy responses can range from dozing off for a few seconds at a time to simply “zoning out” and losing all focus on the road. At highway speeds, one or two seconds of inattention can lead to disaster.

For more information on any of the OHS campaigns visit www.ohs.delaware.gov and follow regular campaign updates on Twitter at www.twitter.com/DEHighwaySafe and Facebook www.facebook.com/ArriveAliveDE.