Early Morning Crash Leaves Two Injured in Charleston County, South Carolina (SC)
CHARLESTON COUNTY, SC- Live5news.com writes that the Charleston County Sheriff’s Office confirmed that one of its police officers was involved in a collision this week that occurred in the early morning. The two-vehicle wreck took place on Old Towne Road close to North Hill Drive in West Ashley.*
The officer sustained injuries in the wreck, and the other driver suffered serious injuries. The roadway was closed down while responders worked at the scene. The South Carolina Highway Patrol is leading the investigation into what occurred.
Traffic accidents kill more police officers during the line of duty than anything else. Tragic crashes are common but are often preventable. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention writes that, on average, 37 percent of officer fatalities are caused by car crashes.
Some of the risk factors involved include failing to use a seatbelt, driving above the speed limit, distractions, and tunnel vision caused by driving in stressful circumstances.
In viewing data from the course of over ten years, the numbers indicated that 528 police officers died in shootings. During that same period, 350 police officers were killed in motor vehicle collisions, another 59 died in motorcycle wrecks, and 122 were struck and killed by cars. The total, 531, is just a little more than the number of police officers killed in gun violence.
Bigger cars on the road make the streets dangerous, and collisions are often devastating. There is a need for the problem to be taken more seriously as these deaths are just as much of a problem and tragedy as the deaths caused by violence. Training needs to take into account the proper ways to use lights and sirens so that officers can limit the risks that they face on the job.
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 a 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://www.live5news.com/2020/05/21/first-alert-charleston-co-deputies-respond-early-morning-crash/
https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/leo/default.html
https://www.officer.com/on-the-street/article/21120014/its-not-all-gunfights