Are Wet Roads To Blame For A Mercer County Accident?

Wet roads can be unforgiving. The U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration says that the average number of vehicle crashes each year is over 5,870,000. Around 23%, or nearly 1,312,000, of those incidents were weather-related. A weather-related accident is any accident that occurs in adverse weather or on slick pavement. An average of 6,250 people are killed, while over 480,000 are injured in weather-related crashes every year, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The majority of the crashes happen during rainfall and on wet pavement. So, about 46% of accidents occur during rainfall, while 72% take place on wet pavement.

Related: Tips For Driving In The Rain

Why do accidents increase when the roads are wet?
Rain decrease your visibility, delays travel time and increases the risk of an accident. Unfortunately, many drivers forget that you cannot drive on wet roads the same way you can dry roads. They will still drive fast and not allow enough space between their car and the cars around them. So, remember, before you set out to drive in the rain, please take your time and be careful.

Safety tips
One important safety tip is to not rush. Wet roads slow down traffic and make driving a lot more challenging. While we may not want to leave the house, staying home isn’t always possible, especially if you have to go to work. To help avoid being in a rush, you could try leaving the house earlier. Another helpful tip is to leave more room between you and the car in front of you. This will give you more time to react in case something happens. It also helps if you always carry an emergency kit, including a tow rope, in your car. In addition, remember to turn off your cruise control. Cruise control is useful on dry roads, but it can be dangerous on wet roads because it could cause you to hydroplane.

Mercer County accident
When you’re driving, it’s very important to be cautious, not only of your driving behavior, but also of the road condition. On Sunday, August 24, 2014, Mercer County lost a life from bad road conditions. It was raining when Tristan Yeager’s mother, Misty Yeager, lost control of her car and crashed. The passenger side was hit hard, killing 11-year-old Tristan who was sitting on that side. Misty recovered at the hospital for non-threatening injuries. State police believed that wet roads caused the accident.

As a Kentucky Accident Attorney, I believe that weather-related crashes can be reduced with awareness. If you have young drivers at home, please discuss safety do’s and don’ts when driving in the rain. It’s amazing how different driving on wet roads can be, so it’s important that they know that: it takes more time to stop on wet roads, increase their distance from other cars, reduce their speed and put their cell phone away. With those tips in mind, hopefully they will avoid getting into an accident.