Labor Day Weekend Has Already Been A Deadly One On The Roads

I wrote earlier this week about the concerns going into this three day weekend. There was already more highway deaths than a average week and we hadn’t reached the weekend. Unfortunately, the weekend numbers have been worse:

• Early Saturday morning , a Hibbing woman was killed in a rollover accident from the southbound lane of Hwy. 169 near County Road 5 in Hibbing. The woman killed was a passenger that was thrown out of the car. Alcohol may have played a role in the rollover according to authorities.
• Saturday afternoon , a East Grand Forks man was killed as he missed a stop sign and traveled into the path of a oncoming truck on County Road 21 in Polk County.
• Saturday evening , a 18 year old passenger was killed as the pick up he was in hit a vehicle as it crossed Highway 95, eight miles west of Cambridge.
• Friday morning , a 44 year old man was killed in Wabasha County as he was turning onto Hwy. 60 from a county road.

Hopefully, increased police presence and discussion about this increase will save some lives over the next couple of days.

These numbers are particularly unfortunate considering that overall the number of highway deaths has been staying down in 2010. But, considering that speed, , lack of seat belts, alcohol and large SUV/Trucks was involved, most of the deaths involve factors where the numbers have not dropped.

As with any death in a Minnesota motor vehicle collision, there are a number of issues that will need to be reviewed. My partner, Joe Crumley, addressed this topic in a article for the Minnesota Lawyers Trial magazine. I was interviewed on the same topic. In all of these cases sorrow for the families and friends of those involved goes out.