Tragic Crash Kills One in Shelby, North Carolina

SHELBY, NC- The shelbystar.com writes that one person died in a two-vehicle collision that took place on East Double Shoals Road. The incident occurred near the intersection with Fallston Road.*  

Reports indicate that a Toyota truck driving northbound on N.C. 18 tried to turn left in front of a van. The van and the car collided, and the truck driver sadly died at the scene. A passenger in the truck also sustained injuries. Responders transported the injured individual to the Atrium Health-Cleveland medical facility for treatment. The nature and extent of that individual's injuries are not yet known.

First responders stated that no one traveling in the van suffered any injuries in the crash. Police closed down the southbound lanes of N.C. 18, while responders investigated and cleared the scene. Witnesses say that the area is dangerous and congested. Nearly six million car crashes occur on the road in the United States every year. Almost half of those accidents occur at intersections. 

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the number of fatal crashes on the road each year has declined for two years in a row. Numbers indicate a drop of more than 900 deaths when comparing 2017 numbers to 2018 statistics. Still, 36,560 people died in traffic crashes throughout the nation.

While cities and states around the country are pushing for safer streets and developing plans through Vision Zero initiatives and similar programs, the NHTSA credits newer vehicles and their improved safety features for the drop in traffic fatalities. More modern cars come equipped with crash prevention technology that alerts drivers of vehicles or objects that the driver might not see, and in some cases, vehicles can brake on their own in an emergency.  

Accident News is a safety and education initiative from Montlick & Associates, designed to help people better understand and thereby avoid common accident causes.  To learn more about our injury prevention programs, including iridesafe.com - click here. We hope you are never in an accident, but if you or family member are injured, call Montlick & Associates 24/7 for your free consultation at 1-800-LAW-NEED (1-800-529-6333) or use our live chat at Montlick.com.

Source:https://www.shelbystar.com/news/20191119/fatal-crash-on-double-shoals-road and https://www.enddd.org/research-stats/  and https://www.nhtsa.gov/traffic-deaths-2018