COLUMBUS – It was a deadly night on central Ohio roadways as traffic accidents claimed three lives in less than an hour.
Two people are dead after a crash that happened at approximately 10:15 p.m. in the eastbound lanes of I-670 near Neil Avenue, according to a report on WBNS 10-TV.
At about 9:42 p.m., Sgt. Brooke Wilson of the Accident Investigation Unit says an unidentified woman was hit by a tractor-trailer when she darted from the shoulder into the far right lane of travel on southbound I-71 south of Gemini Place.
She was pronounced deceased at the scene by Columbus Division of Fire personnel.
The investigation is continuing.
Although there was no indication that either of the incidents involved a hit-and-run driver, they came on the same day that the auto club AAA’s Foundation for Traffic Safety released a report that showed that more than one hit-skip crash occurs every minute on U.S. roads, resulting in 2,049 deaths in 2016, the highest number on record and a 60 percent increase from 2009.
The report said hit-and-run deaths in the U.S. have increased an average of 7.2 percent each year since 2009 and that 65 percent of the fatalities involved pedestrians.
“It is every driver’s legal and moral responsibility to take necessary precautions to avoid hitting a pedestrian, bicyclist or other vehicle. While no one likes being involved in a crash, leaving the scene will significantly increase the penalties for drivers whether they caused the crash or not,” said Jennifer Ryan, director of state relations for AAA.
In Ohio, leaving the scene of an accident and failing to provide appropriate information can be punished by up to a six-month license suspension. The state considers hit-and-run crashes that result in property damage a first-degree misdemeanor and fatal hit-and-run crashes a third-degree felony.