SUV Collides with Church in Burlington, North Carolina (NC)

BURLINGTON, NC- Myfox8.com writes that police are investigating a collision involving an SUV which occurred this week in Burlington. The incident took place when the SUV collided with a church located on Church Street. The wreck was caught on video, which shows a Toyota Highlander collide with the entrance of the church. Reports do not indicate what caused the accident or whether anyone sustained injuries in the wreck. Images from the scene show the vehicle partially inside of the building’s entryway. *

Statistically, about 500 people die every year in crashes involving vehicles colliding with buildings. About 60 times every day, a car crashes into a structure. These incidents injure about 4,000 people annually, in addition to those killed. 

These wrecks are disturbing because they illustrate that there is virtually nowhere in the nation where people are truly safe from traffic accidents. These collisions could be prevented through better-designed parking lots and buildings. 

About twenty years ago, people worried about intentional crashes into buildings. The aftermath of 9/11 left the nation concerned over the vulnerability of its structures to such attacks. However, unintentional car into building incidents continue to kill far more people than drivers intending to crash into a building for political purposes. 

When it comes to parking lots, it is important to create spaces that encourage drivers to slow down. Traffic calming measures that prevent speeding motorists from traveling carelessly near structures and vulnerable pedestrians would help cut down on the number of such tragic incidents. Paint and signs are not particularly effective in obtaining this goal. Narrower parking lot lanes could help, although designing these while still allowing enough space for large vehicles to park becomes a challenge. 

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.

Sources:

https://myfox8.com/news/suv-crashes-into-burlington-church-police-investigating/

https://usa.streetsblog.org/2020/02/19/you-arent-even-safe-from-a-car-inside-a-building/