AUTO ACCIDENTS DURING THE THANKSGIVING HOLIDAY IN MYRTLE BEACH

Family, friends, turkey, ham, stuffing, mac and cheese, apple pie, car crash, hospital visit…

Did you know that the Thanksgiving holiday is one of the deadliest times to be on the roads? With millions of people traveling to visit family and friends, and many more getting behind the wheel after drinking, car crashes cut short many families’ Thanksgiving holiday.

For some, it’s a huge inconvenience, for others a visit to the hospital, and for many, the Thanksgiving holiday ends in tragedy caused by someone else’s carelessness. As it turns out, South Carolina is one of the deadliest states for Thanksgiving holiday travel, and many of those auto accidents happen in Myrtle Beach.

If you are involved in an auto accident during the Thanksgiving holiday caused by someone else’s negligent or reckless driving, the Myrtle Beach auto accident attorneys at Axelrod and Associates want to help you to recover the maximum possible damages from the other driver.

Call now to schedule a meeting with a car crash lawyer on the Axelrod team – we will begin our investigation immediately, negotiate with the insurance company for you, help you to retain any experts that are needed, and do everything that is legally and ethically possible to ensure you get full and fair compensation.

SC IS AMONG THE DEADLIEST STATES FOR THANKSGIVING HOLIDAY TRAVEL

According to A Secure Life, a home security website, using fatal crash data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, South Carolina is in the top ten deadliest states for Thanksgiving Holiday travel, ranking at number six.

According to the SC Highway Patrol, eight people were killed on SC roads in auto accidents during the Thanksgiving holiday last year, and 16 people were killed on SC roads in auto accidents during the Thanksgiving holiday in 2016.

To generate the list, A Secure Life analyzed the number of fatal crashes between 2012 and 2016 in each state during the month of November using the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s fatal crash data. From there, they calculated the likelihood of an accident for this holiday period per 100,000 people in each state, according to the methodology.

According to preliminary figures from the South Carolina Highway Patrol, eight people were killed on state highways during the 2017 Thanksgiving holiday period. There were 16 deaths during the same travel period in 2016.

The National Safety Council estimates 433 people may die on U.S. roads this Thanksgiving holiday period, which runs from Wednesday evening through Sunday.

In the past week, four people have already been killed on SC highways, in Lexington County alone:

A 22-year-old man was killed Thursday in a four-car crash on U.S. 1 near Interstate 20. On Sunday, a pedestrian was hit and killed in West Columbia. A tractor-trailer driver was killed in a fiery crash that shut down I-20 for hours Tuesday morning. And Tuesday afternoon, a pedestrian was killed on U.S. 1 in Lexington.

The deaths came as people are starting to hit the roads for the Thanksgiving holiday, which is the busiest holiday of the year for traveling and during which experts predict a record number of travelers. AAA of the Carolinas estimated more than 700,000 South Carolinians will travel this holiday, with more than 600,000 traveling by car.

Of course, the fatalities caused by auto accidents during the Thanksgiving holiday are just the tip of the iceberg – many more families have their holiday cut short by crashes that result in severe or minor injuries, most of which were preventable and caused by another driver’s carelessness.

Why the increase in auto accidents during the Thanksgiving holiday?

When families get together for the holiday, they must travel. Some don’t have far to go, while others may drive hundreds of miles to get to their destination. Traffic is congested, and drivers are impatient, but one insidious cause of holiday accidents is alcohol.

More people are drinking, people tend to drink more because of the stress of holidays and family tensions, and more people are getting behind the wheel after drinking…

DRUNK DRIVERS INCREASE AUTO ACCIDENTS DURING THE THANKSGIVING HOLIDAY

According to Safewise (another home security site):

• The number one cause of death for Americans between the ages of five and twenty-four is auto accidents;
• Nearly one-third of fatal auto accidents in 2016 were caused by drunk drivers (one drunk driving fatality every 50 minutes on average); and
• SC ranks second in the nation for drunk driving deaths, coming in behind Montana.

So, South Carolina is sixth in the nation for fatal auto accidents during the Thanksgiving holiday, and we are second in the nation overall for drunk driving deaths.

According to the SC Department of Public Safety’s 2016 Traffic Collision Factbook, Horry County drunk driving deaths have decreased slightly in the past two years, with a total of 19 deaths in 2016.

Statewide, the number of total traffic deaths has increased since 2012, with 1020 deaths in 2016, while the total number of drunk driving deaths has decreased slightly. There were 331 drunk driving deaths in SC in 2016, which accounted for 32% of the total traffic fatalities.

STAY SAFE DURING THE THANKSGIVING HOLIDAY IN MYRTLE BEACH

If you are visiting family and friends for the holidays, be aware of the dangers on SC’s highways.

• Be alert while driving;
• Myrtle Beach highways will be congested – be patient;
• Do not drink and drive, and watch for other drivers who may be drunk;
• Avoid distractions while driving – i.e. texting, phone calls, and out-of-control children in the back seat; and
• Try to avoid the peak travel times if possible.

Happy Thanksgiving from the Axelrod team – we want everyone to make it home safely this year, and we are here when you need us.

GOT AXELROD?

If you were hurt in an auto accident during the Thanksgiving holiday, call Axelrod and Associates now at 843-353-3449 or get in touch by email to set up a free consultation and case review with a Myrtle Beach auto accident attorney on the Axelrod team today.