Car Strikes Juvenile in Crash on 9th Avenue in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina (SC)
MYRTLE BEACH, SC- Myhorrynews.com writes that a crash involving a juvenile pedestrian occurred this week in Horry County. The incident took place on 9th Avenue North at its intersection with Withers Alley in the afternoon.*
Reports indicate that the victim suffered injuries in the crash. Responders rushed the individual to the hospital and stated that the injuries are not considered life-threatening.
Pedestrians are dying on American roads in higher numbers than have been experienced in decades. The increasing death toll has become a major concern nationally. One of the main factors that appears to be leading to an increase in deadly collisions with these vulnerable road users is that people are favoring larger cars. Light trucks, such as SUVs, have been dominating the automobile market. The popularity of such vehicles has led to tragic results.
Studies indicate that when an SUV collides with a pedestrian while driving at between twenty and 39 miles per hour, the risk of death is 30 percent, which is five percent higher than that posed by cars. When the vehicle speed increased to 40 miles per hour, 100 percent of victims struck by SUVs reportedly died, whereas just over half of those struck by cars at such speeds lost their lives. As SUVs have become a greater proportion of cars on the road, the percent of pedestrian crashes that lead to death has also increased.
The problem is not only that these vehicles are larger, but it is also the design and shape of SUVs that make then more of a danger. The tall, square fronts lead to more bodily damage that the low sedan front ends.
Efforts to reduce pedestrian deaths, including airbags designed to protect pedestrians, are being developed in Europe. However, the effectiveness of such designs is not yet clear when it comes to SUVs because so few of these large vehicles are on the road in Europe.
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.myhorrynews.com/news/pedestrian-hit-by-car-in-myrtle-beach/article_0bfe4614-de7b-11ea-8066-dfb74f0fba26.html
https://www.forbes.com/sites/jimgorzelany/2020/06/17/study-says-suvs-are-more-deadly-striking-pedestrians-than-cars/#1e3d0ddd31eb