The Wininger Law Firm - June 25, 2012
- Car Accident
On Friday night at approximately 10:00 p.m., a driver lost control of his car and the resulting crash injured five people.
According to a press release from Pelham Police Lt. David Rushton, both police and fire departments responded to the crash on Pelham Parkway. In the accident, the driver of a Nissan Maxima, who was traveling northbound on Pelham Parkway, lost control of his vehicle and crossed the median and drove into the southbound lane. The press release stated that the “Nissan then rolled over and struck a southbound Honda Civic before coming to rest on its right side.”
One 17-year-old passenger in the Nissan, had to be extricated from the Nissan, and airlifted to UAB hospital by helicopter. The Nissan had three other occupants, who were all juveniles, and all three were taken to UAB Hospital by ambulance. Two of these passengers were in critical condition.
A family member transported the driver of the Honda to Shelby Baptist Medical Center to be checked out by medical personnel.
The crash is still under investigation by Pelham’s Traffic Operations Unit.
In Alabama in 2009, young drivers, ages 16-20, caused over 15,500 crashes, which is on average about a crash every 15 minutes during normal driving hours. These crashes resulted in 63 deaths and injured 4500.
The Center for Disease Control and Prevention states that motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for U.S. teens. Per mile driven, teen drivers are four times more likely than older drivers to crash. In 2009, 3,000 teens in this country were killed and more than 350,000 were treated in emergency rooms for injuries suffered in automobile accidents.
A few of the most common reasons for juvenile crashes are that teens are more likely to speed and allow less distance between vehicles. Another reason, for the high rate of crashes is teens driving while under the influence of alcohol.
To prevent young driver crashes, research suggests that graduated drivers licensing (GDL) programs are associated with reductions of 38% and 40% in fatal and injury crashes, respectively, among young drivers. This program is designed to delay full licensure while allowing teens to get their initial driving experience under low-risk conditions. Alabama GDL laws have a beginner stage and then an intermediate stage, with the driver becoming a full privileged driver at age 17.