March 9, 2009
MSNBC reports that there have been a rash of pedestrian accidents in Snohomish County over the last few weeks. Since mid-February, at least five (5) teenagers have been hit by trucks or cars while walking along Snohomish County roads.
“I’m not even sure why this is happening,” says Kristen Thortenson, a spokesperson for the Marysville Fire District and Snohomish County SafeKIDS. “Kids are paying less attention, and so are drivers.”
Although none of the young people were killed, most of them were taken to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, the top trauma center in the Northwest region. One boy suffered what has been described a “life-changing” injury, but no other details were given.
Experts believe there may be several factors at play, which may explain the rash of pedestrian accidents involving teens. Teenagers are still growing and they may not be used to these changes, and may make risky decisions (like darting across the street at night).
The switch to daylight savings may also play a factor. Typical a time change will bring an increase in accidents because people are not used to the time change.
Drivers today may also be failing to pay enough attention, especially when more and more people are using cell phones and other technological devices while driving.
All of us, pedestrians and drivers, need to take greater precautions, especially at night. I would also advise teens to avoid walking along county or rural roads at night, without other traffic control measures present (like lights, sidewalks, etc.).
I’ve also written in previous posts that Washington law imposes a duty of care on BOTH drivers AND pedestrians. This means each person has to act carefully in consideration of the circumstances that are present. Determining fault in auto-pedestrian cases can be challenging and complex. Often times the determination of who caused or contributed to the accident is heavily dependent on the facts. A change in one fact can lead to a different conclusion when it comes to deciding who should be charged for causing the accident.
