Winter Weather Makes for Hazardous Driving Conditions

 Posted on December 17, 2013 in Personal Injury

Although the calendar says December 21st will mark the beginning of winter, the weather early this month is proving otherwise. NBC recently reported about the winter storm that has been causing unsafe traveling conditions across the country, and the dangerous consequences of traveling in the winter weather.

In the Northeast, a storm of ice and snow caused power outages, flight cancellations, and car accidents on early in December. Many of the East Coast's major cities were hit hard, and were expected to experience another storm on just two days later.

The winter weather that hit the East Coast came from Texas and the Mid-South, where events including marathons and holiday celebrations were cancelled due to inclement weather. Over 22,000 residences in the Dallas area lost power.

The storm's conditions caused a 50-car pileup on the Pennsylvania turnpike, and ended in at least one fatality after a driver who was involved in a minor accident got out of his vehicle and was later hit and killed. As a result, the turnpike was closed for seven hours. The icy roads led to two people being killed in a car accident in New Jersey, after sliding off of the road and causing a 24-car crash. In Connecticut, the storm caused a 20-car pileup.

The extreme cold and winter weather is supposed to continue across the country, undoubtedly causing travel delays and weather-related accidents as a result. While some Illinois residents may have suffered because of the thousands of flight cancellations that occurred across the country, those in the Chicago area did not experience extreme weather of the North East. However, as reported by ABC News, the Illinois Tollway Officials were prepared with 180 snowplows to clear the roadways in the Chicago area. With the official start of the winter season less than two weeks away, there will still be many opportunities to use them.

There is no doubt that those travelling in winter weather should use extreme caution while doing so. Conditions involving snow, ice, sleet, and freezing rain certainly make driving conditions more treacherous than usual. While many forecasters and government agencies encourage citizens to avoid traveling in harsh conditions, it is sometimes unavoidable. These conditions make car accidents much more probable, and that is not surprising.