According to statistics released by the federal government, more than 150 billion text messages are sent each month in this country. It should not come as a surprise that 20 percent of teenagers and 10 percent of adults admitted to engaging in extended text messaging conversations while driving. Georgia has enacted several laws aimed at making highways safer by restricting activities by drivers that put other people at risk of serious injury in an auto accident. For example, school bus drivers in Macon and in other communities are prohibited from using their cellphones for talking or texting while driving. This ban also applies to drivers who are younger than 18 years of age. Drivers 18 years of age and older are prohibited from texting and driving. These cellphone laws are primary violations under state law. As a primary violation, a police officer may stop a motorist who is in violation without…

When people in Georgia are involved in motor vehicle collisions, especially those that occur at high speed, they are in danger of suffering shoulder fractures as one of their possible injuries. Shoulder fractures can occur in accidents as a result of a significant blow to the chest, leading to breaks to any of the three main bones that comprise the shoulder. Shoulder fractures may occur to the clavicle, the scapula, or the proximal humerus, which is the top portion of the humerus or upper-arm bone. The fractures can range in severity, and the resulting treatment needed will vary from surgery and metal plates to immobilization and physical therapy. It is generally hard to break the scapula, as it is fairly well-protected by the surrounding muscles and the chest wall. High-speed collisions can provide the force necessary to cause such a fracture, usually through also causing chest injuries. Scapular fractures may…

Three people were injured in a collision in Mitchell County on December 25. The driver of one of the vehicles involved in the crash was charged with driving under the influence in relation to the incident. According to the Georgia State Patrol, the car accident occurred at about 12 p.m. at the intersection of GA 112 and GA 262 near the Grady-Mitchell County line. A vehicle driven by a 40-year-old woman, traveling south on GA 112, stopped to yield to oncoming traffic while attempting to make a left turn onto 262. Another vehicle, driven by a 27-year-old man traveling north on GA 112, crossed the center line and collided head-on with the woman's vehicle. The female driver and her 81-year-old female passenger were transported to a local Thomasville hospital for treatment of serious injuries. The male driver suffered only minor injuries. He was transported to a hospital in Camilla for treatment. Besides…

Many Georgia drivers become involved in car accidents. While some accidents are minor, others could result in serious injuries. However, there are certain ways that a driver or other vehicle occupants may reduce the risk of common accident injuries. Common injuries that could leave a person temporarily or permanently disabled include head, neck, and brain injuries. A person may suffer a face, head, or brain injury if a collision causes the person's head to come into contact with a sharp or blunt object, such as a piece of glass from the windshield or the dashboard. These types of injuries can be prevented by properly installed front and side airbags. Additionally, people should try to wrap their arms around their head to form an emergency helmet. Other common crash injuries include neck, back, and leg injuries. Neck injuries can include whiplash and damage to the spinal cord. Back injuries can also…

According to law enforcement officials with the Henry County Police, a Butts County man was killed and two others were seriously injured in a collision that occurred when a driver reportedly ran a stop sign. The fatal collision occurred on the night of Nov. 29 on Georgia 81. Officers did not say if any other factors like impairment contributed to the wreck. A 19-year-old man was driving a 2002 Ford Focus on Jackson Lake Road when he approached the road's intersection with Ga. 81. He reportedly failed to stop at a stop sign when he arrived at the intersection. He then collided with a 2007 Ford Mustang driven by an 18-year-old man. The impact of the collision caused the death of the 19-year-old. He was pronounced dead at the scene of the accident by responding emergency personnel. A 19-year-old female passenger in the Ford suffered serious injuries, and she was…

A Calhoun woman has received an indictment after a May 23 car accident that allegedly involved drunk driving and killed a pedestrian. The Gordon County grand jury issued the indictment after a 50-year-old woman struck a 65-year-old woman in a residential neighborhood while the victim was at a mailbox. According to the deceased's daughter, her mother, who was from Augusta, went to the mailbox at around 11:30 a.m. The woman was on the side of the road at the mailbox on Blackwood Place when a Dodge Neon SXT struck her. The Dodge arrived on Blackwood from Ga. Highway 53, and a Georgia State Patrol's incident report indicated that the vehicle was traveling at a fast speed. After the impact, the pedestrian sent her about 52 feet into the air. The Augusta woman was airlifted to Erlanger Hospital in Chattanooga but died at the hospital. After the crash, the Dodge traveled…

Regardless of how good a Georgia driver is, he or she cannot control what other drivers do. Sudden changes by others can lead to dangerous situations that increase the risk of an accident. This is generally true even if the driver has time to anticipate what others are doing on the highway. However, there are technologies that may enable vehicles to take some of the guesswork out of driving. These technologies work by alerting the driver of changing conditions and may even help the car take action to stop by itself. Automatic braking and other speed-limiting technologies may help drivers avoid rear-end collisions, while lane-departure warnings can help drivers avoid accidents while changing lanes. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, these technologies are not always standard in vehicles. In some cases, they are not even required to help a vehicle meet safety requirements. The National Transportation Safety Board…

A multi-vehicle traffic accident on the evening of Nov. 6 left one woman dead and another person injured in Dougherty County. A third man involved in the collision received a traffic citation and may face additional criminal charges related to the fatal crash as well. According to information released by investigators with the Dougherty County Police, the three-car accident occurred at approximately 8:30 p.m. at the intersection of Liberty Expressway and Holly Drive in Albany. Witnesses claim the 43-year-old Mitchell County woman driving a black Volkswagen Beetle was stopped at a red light when her vehicle was rear-ended by a red van driven by a 72-year-old Montgomery County man. The force of the impact then caused the Volkswagen to strike another black vehicle in front of it driven by a 34-year-old Ocklocknee's Ford woman. Bystanders rushed to assist the victims, pulling the 34-year-old woman from her vehicle, but they found…

The Georgia State Police report that on Oct. 9, a four-vehicle accident in Conyers claimed the life of one person, and two other individuals who were involved were hospitalized for unknown injuries. One of the injured victims, a deputy, was reportedly pursuing the wrong-way driver at the time of the crash. According to the report, the chain-reaction collision transpired at the intersection of Old Covington Highway and Sigman Road in Rockdale County around 11:30 p.m. when a woman driving a Hyundai Santa Fe in the wrong direction on Sigman Road smashed into a black Kia. The force of the impact caused the Kia to crash into a pickup truck, at which point both cars and the truck collided with a fourth vehicle belonging to the deputy who had been chasing the wrong-way driver. The woman driving the Kia was instantly killed in the initial collision with the Santa Fe and…

  While Georgia prohibits adults who are behind the wheel of a motor vehicle from a specific type of cellphone use, texting, many states have enacted bans on cellphone use altogether while driving. In large part, the reason that lawmakers in Georgia and other states enacted these bans is the troubling correlation between cellphone use while driving and traffic accidents resulting in death or injuries, as expounded by various statistics and studies. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, distracted driving can be a mortal mistake. Reportedly, distracted drivers caused 18 percent of deadly traffic accidents throughout the country in 2010. In this way, distracted driving was responsible for the deaths of 3,092 people in total. In that same year, 2010, crashes attributed to distracted driving caused 416,000 people to suffer injuries, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reports. A Pew survey indicates that four out of every 10…