Accidents involving emergency vehicles in the United States are becoming a huge problem. Fatality rates for emergency responders are estimated to be about 4.8 times higher than the national average. Why is this? Emergency vehicles are often traveling at a high speed to reach their destinations. This means that emergency vehicle accidents have a higher risk of causing severe injuries or death.
Exactly how many traffic crashes involve emergency service vehicles and first responders?
Ambulance Accidents
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) studied the ambulance accidents that occurred over the 20-year period from 1992-2011. According to the agency, there are approximately 6,500 ambulance crashes every year. On average, 35% of crashes involving ambulances resulted in an injury or death to at least one person.
Out of the people who are killed in an ambulance accident, 63% were occupants of a passenger vehicle, 21% were passengers in the ambulance (emergency medical services personnel or the patient), 4% were ambulance drivers, and 12% were non-occupants.
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Fire Truck Accidents
According to the United States Fire Administration (the lead federal agency for data collection about fires and fire departments) and the NHTSA, fire truck accidents are the second leading cause of on-the-job deaths for firefighters. When the NHTSA analyzed data on motor vehicle crashes involving fire vehicles from 2000-2009, it found that there were about 31,660 fire truck accidents during that 10-year period. Of those accidents, 49 of them resulted in at least one fatality to an occupant of the firetruck.
Police Vehicle Accidents
Police car-related accidents are the leading cause of on-the-job deaths for police officers in the United States. According to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund, 775 police officers died in car accident-related incidents from the period of 2005-2017. This was 37% of all line-of-duty deaths for law enforcement officers. These fatal crashes are often preventable by actions like seat belt use, obeying the speed limit, refraining from using electronic devices while driving, and police pursuit driver training.
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Experienced Las Vegas Personal Injury Attorneys
Were you or a loved one injured in an emergency vehicle accident in the Las Vegas area? If you’d like to speak with an experienced personal injury attorney about your case, contact Anthem Injury Lawyers today.
We do not charge for initial consultations and will travel to you at home or in the hospital if necessary. We deal with personal injury cases all over the State of Nevada, including Las Vegas, North Las Vegas, Henderson, Summerlin, and all of Clark County. There are no attorney fees until you have received your compensation. Contact us today at (702) 857-6000 for a free consultation.
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