Recent Examples Of Police Being Hit On the Roads Remind Drivers To Slow Down

The last week of the year, saw three separate incidents where officers were hit on Minnesota roads:

• In Minnetonka, on northbound Interstate 494, at Hwy. 7, a state trooper was injured when his stopped vehicle was hit. the trooper has stopped to help a driver who went off the road.
• In Duluth, two police car was hit on E. Palm Street. The driver of the striking vehicle is believed to have been drinking. As a result of the impacts, two police officers were taken to the hospital.
• In South Dakota, a State Trooper Lyndsey Dubbelde was on a traffic stop on I-229 between Western and Minnesota Avenues when she was hit by a a 1999 Dodge Caravan.

These are officers who are on the roads doing their jobs. Protecting society and doing their work in full uniform with lights going. I have had the honor on a number of occasions to represent some of Minnesota’s finest. Usually, they are hit by cars going too fast and not giving them the room they need.

Minnesota law requires all cars to move over one lane when emergency vehicles are on the road. It’s pretty simple to keep those actions in mind. While the law doesn’t directly require a reduction in speed , it’s the safe thing to do and it is taking into consideration the conditions at the time.

If it’s wintry weather and the emergency vehicles are dealing with a car in the ditch, consider for a minute how the car got there. It’s probably a case of the road itself being especially slippery in the very same area. A couple of times a year, we will be involved in layered car accidents where one car hits another and within the next ten minutes, two or three more impacts take place. A good look out and slowing down will make a difference. Also if you are in an accident, make sure you clear yourself and all passengers away from the dangers of oncoming cars.

"With emergency lights and flares out in this case, there was no excuse for this crash to occur," State Patrol Capt. Matt Langer said, adding that drivers need to slow down and give troopers room.