According to local police, both alcohol and speed were factors in car accident that took the life of a Milford High graduate and veteran of the war in Afghanistan back in March. The young Manchester man, 24 years old, passed away at a Boston hospital after he drove his vehicle into a tree on North River Road, according to The Cabinet.
Both alcohol and speed are factors in a number of car accidents in Massachusetts. Unfortunately, the two are a double threat as they can be committed separately, but are commonly committed simultaneously. These accidents are preventable and drivers need to be aware of the hazards they pose on our roadways when they commit either of the two.
Our Boston drunk driving accident attorneys understand that there were more than 10,800 people killed on U.S. roadways because of accidents that involved an alcohol-impaired driver in 2009. Massachusetts witnessed nearly 150 of these fatal accidents. Nationwide, alcohol-related car accidents account for more than 30 percent of all of the vehicle accident deaths.
After the accident, the young motorist was taken to the Southern New Hampshire Medical Center located in Nashua. He was later air lifted to Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston.
The driver lived in Manchester. After graduating from high school in Milford, he enlisted in the Army and served in Afghanistan.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), there were more than 10,500 people that were killed in speeding-related accidents in the Untied States in 2009. Speeding was a factor in nearly a third of all traffic accidents that were reported during the year. These types of accidents cost society approximately $40 billion each year.
In all states, including the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, it is illegal to operate a motor vehicle with a blood alcohol concentration level of 0.08 or higher.
Of the nearly 11,000 alcohol-related car accidents in 2009, more than 7,000 of those killed were the drivers that were legally drunk, nearly 3,000 were the vehicle’s occupants and almost 1,000 were non-opccupants.
Innocent children are oftentimes the victims of these careless accidents as well. In 2009, nearly 15 percent of the estimated 1,300 children under the age of 15 that were killed in traffic accidents were involved in alcohol-related accidents.
Drivers should keep an extra watchful eye out for drunk drivers during certain times of the day and week. Intoxicated drivers are more likely to be out on our roadways and causing collisions during the evening hours. You’re four times more likely to be involved in an accident with a drunk driver during this time. Motorists should also be cautious during the weekend. A majority of those killed in these types of accidents were the result of weekend collisions.
Regardless of when you are traveling on the roadways, you’re asked to keep an eye out for impaired drivers. If you’re out and you suspect that someone is intoxicated and is about to set out on our roadways, you’re urged to intervene.
Offer them with advice on other ways to get home, including called a family member or a friend, calling a taxi, getting a hotel room or staying at a buddy’s house. With a conscious effort from everyone, we can all help to reduce the number of fatalities cause by drunk driving accidents.
If you’ve been involved in an accident with a drunk driver in Massachusetts, contact the drunk driving accident lawyers at Jeffrey Glassman Injury Lawyers for a free and confidential consultation to discuss your rights. Call 877-617-5333.
Additional Resources:
Speed, alcohol led to fatal Milford crash, police say, by Kathy Cleveland, The Cabinet
More Blog Entries:
Drunk Driver’s License Taken for Life to Avoid Future Drunk Driving Accidents in Boston, Boston Drunk Driving Accident Lawyer Blog, August 25, 2011
Winthrop Man with 7 OUI Convictions Faces an 8th Charge for Drunk Driving in Massachusetts, Boston Drunk Driving Accident Lawyer Blog, August 12, 2011