Rollover Crash Causes Injuries and Blocks Merritt Island Causeway

BREVARD COUNTY, FL- According to floridatoday.com, a vehicle on Merritt Island Causeway flipped over around 12:35 p.m. on Tuesday, April 17, 2018. The accident, which occurred near Banana River Drive, resulted in traffic being blocked for a couple of hours. No fatalities were reported, but Brevard County Fire Rescue stated that one person was ejected from the vehicle and brought to the hospital for treatment.*

In 2017, there were 396,001 car accidents in Florida alone, resulting in 2,971 deaths. Car accidents that involve rollovers are especially dangerous. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), only 2.1% of car accidents involve a rollover, and yet close to 35% of fatalities resulting from motor vehicle crashes occurred in rollover accidents. Around 69% of the reported fatalities from rollovers involved passengers who were not restrained by safety belts.

Passengers who do not wear safety belts are at a much greater risk of being ejected from a vehicle. In a study of traffic-related fatalities that was conducted by the NHTSA, passengers in cars, trucks, minivans, and SUV’s who used their safety restraints had only a 3% chance of being ejected from vehicles. The overall risk of ejection for passengers who were traveling unrestrained was 36%.

While some people survive being ejected from a vehicle, the risk of dying in a car crash is more than three times as high for passengers who are ejected from vehicles as it is for those who are not. This highlights the importance of using safety belts and age-appropriate restraints when traveling in a motor vehicle.