Accidents often spike over the holidays and New Year and Christmas is no exception. The New Year’s holiday is associated with drunken driving and an upsurge in fatal wrecks.
Georgia saw a surge of fatal accidents. A serious wreck in metro Atlanta on New Year’s Eve left two men dead and two injured on Moreland Avenue, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.
DeKalb County police said in an incident report, a Ford Escape was heading south on Moreland close to the intersection with Key Road. The accident location is on the border of DeKalb and southeast Atlanta.
The Ford drifted from its lane and ended up in a northbound lane, where it hit a Nissan Altima head-on, according to the report.
The impact killed both drivers while the passengers in the Ford were taken to a hospital for treatment of minor injuries.
The 2018 holidays saw an upsurge in deaths and injuries on the roads of Georgia, according to official statistics.
Public safety officials recorded 44 deaths over Christmas and the New Year. The victims included a firefighter killed in Dougherty County.
The holiday death total was almost double the 24 drivers and passengers who died over the Christmas and New Year’s travel periods in 2017.
The Albany Herald reported Georgia state troopers investigated about 550 traffic crashes with 223 recorded injuries and seven deaths during the 2018-19 New Year’s holiday period from Dec. 28 to midnight on the night of New Year’s Day. The Christmas travel period was more deadly than New Year’s. Police recorded 26 highway deaths in Georgia over the 126-hour Christmas travel period.
Head-on collisions are among the most dangerous types of auto accident on the roads of Georgia. Most head-on collisions are reported on rural roads.
While just 2 percent of crashes are head-on collisions, they account for about one in 10 of all deaths on the roads of Georgia.
People who are hurt in head-on collisions are more likely to suffer from serious injuries like paralysis, traumatic brain injuries, and fractures.
State officials reported 368 people were arrested for driving under the influence (DUI), and a further 6,971 citations and 11,339 warnings were issued to drivers over the New Year’s period.
If you or a family member has been involved in a head-on collision caused by a driver who veers across the road or a wrong way driver, please call the Law Office of Michael West at (404) 913-1529.