Crash Stats: Fourth is Deadliest Day on Roads

According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, more than 700 people in the U.S. were killed in car crashes on Independence Day from 2006 to 2010.

Source Houston Chronicle

July 4, 2012

2 min read

July 04--While the Fourth of July fills parks and backyards with picnics, barbecues and fireworks, it also fills the streets with more vehicles than usual, making this holiday the single most fatal day for motorists.

"If you look at all 365 days, July Fourth stands out as the deadliest," said Russ Rader, a spokesman for the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

According to the institute's latest crash statistics, more than 700 people in the U.S. were killed in car crashes on Independence Day from 2006 to 2010, placing it as the top day for car-crash fatalities. The only other holiday to make the top 10 was New Year's day, which had 620 deaths.

"It boils down to exposure," said Rader, "On days when there is a lot of driving, the risk of serious crashes is higher."

With schools out, summer is the highest season for crash-related deaths, said Rader.

Texas alone had 253 deaths last July. With offices closed July 4, the number of people hitting the road for vacations and holiday parties multiplies many folds.

Alcohol can play role

Alcohol also factors into the day's death toll.

"Since it's a holiday, it has a higher proportion of alcohol-involved fatal crashes," he said. "People are attending holiday events and then drinking and driving."

But fatal crashes are not limited to the road.

"More boaters get out on the Fourth of July than they do for most other days in the summer," said Petty Officer Andrew Kendrick, spokesman for the U.S. Coast Guard Air Station Houston.

Citing 758 boat-related deaths nationwide in 2011, the Coast Guard is heading a Fourth of July safe boating campaign for the high volume day.

"We just want people to take the necessary precautions to ensure they are safe while having fun," Kendrick said.

The Coast Guard advises the use of life jackets for anyone on the water, having a marine band radio to contact the Coast Guard in case of an emergency, and telling family and friends where they plan to go and when they expect to return.

Alcohol is also highly discouraged.

Fatality statistics

"The hot sun beating down and the motion of the water will multiply the effects of the alcohol," said Kendrick, who said 16 percent of last year's boat fatalities involved alcohol consumption.

"Most people are out to have a good time, so we just want them to have a safer time," he said.

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