Tragic Crash Kills Three on Nexton Parkway in Summerville, South Carolina (SC)

SUMMERVILLE, SC- Abcnews4.com writes that a crash occurred on Nexton Parkway that killed three people. The incident took place in the late afternoon close to Home Telecom.*

One vehicle was driving northbound, and another car was traveling south and attempted to turn at the intersection with Brighton Park Boulevard. The two cars collided with the turning vehicle suffering an impact on its side. The driver in one of the cars sustained injuries, but the three people in the other car all died from their injuries. The South Carolina Highway Patrol is working on the crash investigation.

Side impact crashes or some of the deadliest collisions that take place on the road. One study conducted in Georgia found that more people die in side-impact crashes at intersections than in any other type of impact. Part of the problem with side-impact crashes is that when a car is struck on its side, many of the safety features available to protect from the front and rear-end crashes are not available to help reduce the impact felt by the occupants. Little space is between the occupants and a car that strikes on the side of the vehicle in which they are riding.  Side airbags are sometimes useful, preventing many of these crashes. However, these airbags are not required to be in all vehicles. 

One major cause of side-impact crashes is left turns. Left turning drivers frequently cut into the path of oncoming vehicles. It can be difficult for a driver who is attempting to turn left to gauge the speed and distance of oncoming vehicles. A miss-timed left turn can lead to deadly consequences. Some evidence suggests avoiding left turns altogether is not only safer but also a more efficient way to get around. 

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://abcnews4.com/news/local/crash-on-nexton-parkway-causing-traffic-delays

https://www.iihs.org/topics/airbags#:~:text=Lives%20saved%20by%20airbags,-NHTSA%20estimates%20that&text=NHTSA%20estimates%20that%20as%20of%202012%2C%202%2C252%20lives%20have%20been,McCartt%20%26%20Kyrychenko%2C%202007).

https://theconversation.com/why-ups-drivers-dont-turn-left-and-you-probably-shouldnt-either-71432#:~:text=The%20company%20gives%20each%20driver,than%20they%20have%20to%20be.

https://www.gahighwaysafety.org/statistics/mannerofcollision.pdf