Road fatalities up in Southeast Missouri

Troop E of the Missouri State Highway Patrol reports 17 fatalities in the 13-county MSHP Southeast Missouri region so far in 2022, a 41% increase from 12 deaths in the same period in 2021.

Five of the 17 casualties accounted for through Tuesday's incident reports came from one location — March 17 on Interstate 57 at mile marker 13.4 just outside Charleston in Mississippi County.

On that foggy St. Patrick's Day morning, a tractor-trailer driven by Jose Lopez Ortiz of Laredo, Mexico, struck the rear of a similar rig driven by Henry Donnerson of Memphis, Tennessee, triggering a series of accidents. In addition to the five deceased, 15 were injured.

In the 25-county Missouri Department of Transportation's Southeast District, 31 roadway deaths have been reported through Sunday, said district engineer Mark Croarkin.

Statewide

Cumulatively, death totals are up for the seven MoDOT districts across Missouri.

Through March 20, 178 have died on the state's roadways, an 8.5% rise from 164 for the same period last year and a 25.3% increase from the 142 who perished in pre-pandemic 2019.

Explanation

Sgt. Bill Mahoney, a spokesman for the Kansas City, Missouri, Police Department has a ready answer for the increases in roadway deaths.

"Everyone in our traffic unit will tell you they've noticed speed has jumped in the past two years," Mahoney told KMBC-TV.

Drilling down

According to MoDOT statewide statistics, 111 highway deaths in 2022, or 62.4%, have been in the 21-to-64 age demographic.

People not wearing seat belts account for 64% of Missouri highway deaths to-date, similar to the percentage of fatalities among the unbuckled in the years 2019 to 2021.

MoDOT stresses its figures refer to the percent of unbuckled casualties only in situations where seat belt use is required and known to authorities.

Nationally, the U.S. Department of Transportation has reported 2020 saw the highest number of traffic fatalities since 2007.