Each year on Halloween, children enjoy trick-or-treating in San Antonio, Alamo Heights, Olmos Park, Terrell Hills and surrounding areas. Unfortunately, some of the kids who are out for a good time will end up involved in pedestrian collisions that could result in injury or even death. A personal injury lawyer knows that children face double the risk of dying in a pedestrian collision on Halloween as compared with on other days of the year. Parents need to know about the added danger that their kids face and should take steps to keep their children safe on Halloween night.

Reducing the Risk of Halloween Collisions

State Farm Insurance recently conducted a study of more than four million motor vehicle accidents that occurred between 1990 and 2010. According to the fatality reports from this time span, an average of 2.6 children each day are killed in pedestrian accidents in the United States. On Halloween, however, there were an average of 5.5 pedestrian accident deaths among kids.

Children between the ages of 12 and 15 were actually at the greatest risk of being killed in a deadly pedestrian crash on Halloween night. Kids in this age group accounted for 32 percent of the Halloween pedestrian deaths. The age group with the next highest number of fatalities, 23 percent, was kids between the ages of five and eight.

Children who are involved in accidents on Halloween night were most likely to be killed in the middle of a block, rather than at the corners of roads or at intersections. An estimated 70 percent of the fatalities happened in the middle of a block. This is likely because kids tend to run out between parked vehicles into the road to cross and drivers do not see them.

The majority of accidents also happened between 6:00 PM and 7:00 PM when it was starting to get dark. In total, 60 percent of deadly Halloween night crashes resulted in kids dying between the hours of 5:00 PM and 9:00 PM.

Parents need to be aware of the risks their children face, especially when their kids are out at night or when they allow older kids to go trick-or-treating on their own without parental supervision. Safe Kids Worldwide recommends that parents go out trick-or-treating with kids until at least age 12, and that parents prohibit younger kids from going out alone without adults.

Kids of all ages should also be reminded of basic safety rules like making eye contact with drivers before crossing; looking both ways before crossing the road; and continuing to pay attention while going across rather than looking at electronic devices. Wearing brightly colored costumes, avoiding masks that obscure the ability to see, and putting reflectors on trick-or-treat bags could also go a long way towards helping kids to stay safe and avoid pedestrian deaths on Halloween night.

Drivers must also do their part to help reduce the risk that a deadly Halloween pedestrian crash will occur. Drivers should slow down, especially in residential areas, and should be watchful at all times for kids who are out on Halloween night.

Contact a San Antonio accident lawyer at the Herrera Law Firm. Call 800-455-1054 or visit http://www.herreralaw.com for a free case consultation.

This entry was posted on Monday, October 27th, 2014 at 8:20 pm and is filed under Car Accidents. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.