Who:

Deborah Parker, 58, in Sturbridge, Massachusetts died just after midnight on Sunday, 5/4/14, on Route 148 / Brookfield Rd. She drove a 2012 Ford Fusion and crossed the center line to hit a 2002 Chevrolet Silverado driven by Ryan Fabrycki, 22, along with his passenger and brother, Conor, 21. The brothers were able to walk away from the crash and did not have significant injuries.

How:

Per police reports, Parker was southbound on Route 148. She crossed the center line and impacted the northbound Chevy. She was not wearing her seat belt, while the brothers were. She required extrication and was declared dead at a local hospital.

Why:

This is another sad case of driver error leading to a preventable collision, and a lack of seat belt use leading to a preventable death. It also demonstrates how speed and weight discrepancies unnecessarily take lives.

The 2012 Fusion weighs 3384 lbs and comes with a “good” IIHS frontal score. It was impacted by a 2002 Silverado, that weighs 4709 lbs, or 139% of the Fusion’s weight.  As a result, the Fusion automatically faced 39% more force in the collision than it would have colliding with another Fusion. This placed it at a severe disadvantage in the collision that would not have existed had we placed greater restrictions on manufacturers’ abilities to create and citizens’ abilities to drive needlessly heavy vehicles on our roads.

Given the likely speeds of the collision (~45 mph), the collision likely imparted at least 431KJ of energy into the Fusion. The Fusion frontal impact test simulates 245KJ of energy (a Fusion impacting another at 40 mph). In other words, the Fusion faced 176% of the force it would have experienced in the type of crash the vehicle was rated for.

That said, these forces, while high, are significantly lower than those in the majority of fatal crashes I study, and within the range of collision force percentages I review in non-fatal collisions.

However, given the the lack of seat belt use, death was sadly a near- certainty. Otherwise, she almost certainly might have survived this collision.

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Who:

James Nign, 39, his wife, Meghann Nign, 27, and an unrelated child, Addisyn Benzel, 11, were killed on 1/19/14 at 10:54 AM on State Route 518 by mile marker 4 in Waysne township, Columbiana County, OH. They were driving westbound in a 2006 Chevrolet Equinox when struck by a 2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee Rachel K. Lindesmith, 31, drove. Lindesmith had been traveling eastbound and drifted left of the center line into the path of the Equinox. Lindesmith and Austin, her 9 month old son, were injured. Nine were in the Equinox beside the three fatalities, including McKenna M. Nign, 11, McKayla E. Howard, 11, Savannah D. Nign, 6, Chase D. Nign, 4, Brody B. Nign, 1, and Payslee R. Nign, 9 months. Both parents were volunteer firefighters at the Calcutta Volunteer F.D. All of the children who did not die were injured.

How:

Per police reports, the Nigns were westbound, Lindesmith was eastbound, and drifted across the center line, causing a head-on collision. Lindesmith was belted while her son was secured in a rear-facing child seat. Both were injured, but the injuries were not life-threatening.

Within the Equinox, neither parent was belted. Both were killed. Addysin, 11, was unbelted and in the cargo area, from where she was ejected and killed. There were no seat belts available in the cargo area. McKenna, 11, was unrestrained in the cargo area. McKayla, 11, was unrestrained in the cargo area. Savannah, 6, was unrestrained and seated in her mother’s lap in the front seat. Chase, 4, was in a child safety seat, as was Brody, 1, and Payslee, 9 months.

Why:

This is one of the most frustrating cases I’ve read. I tend to feel that way whenever I read stories involving unbelted children…or adults. Or overloaded vehicles. There were 9 occupants in a vehicle designed for 5. This was incomprehensible. It’s not clear why Lindesmith crossed the center line; she was clearly at fault for the collision. However, the deaths that occurred were preventable–let’s see why.

Looking at the physics of the crash, every single person in both vehicles should have lived, had every occupant been properly restrained. The 2006 Equinox weighs ~3790 lbs and has a “good” frontal score. It was impacted by a 2011 Grand Cherokee, which weighs ~4687 lbs, or 124% of the Equinox’s weight.  As a result, the Equinox occupants automatically faced 24% more force in the collision than they would have experienced colliding with another Equinox, placing them at a significant disadvantage in the collision. The Grand Cherokee occupants, meanwhile, experienced 19% lower forces.

Given the likely speeds of the collision (~65 mph), the Grand Cherokee likely imparted at least 898KJ of energy into the Equinox. The Equinox frontal impact test simulates 275KJ of energy (an Equinox impacting another at 40 mph). In other words, the Equinox occupants faced 327% of the force they’d have experienced in the type of crash it was rated for. These were tremendous forces, but based on the intact A-frame and passenger survival space evident in the photos, had the parents and child been properly restrained, they would have survived them. The fact that several of the children in the vehicle did survive is additional evidence that the collision was survivable.

Interestingly, the Jeep’s frontal test simulated 340KJ of energy (a Jeep impacting another at 40 mph), indicating that its occupants would have faced 214% of the forces it was rated to safely withstand, given that the Equinox imparted 726KJ of energy into the Jeep. While these were still tremendous forces, their odds of survival were still highly significant.

This was ultimately a wholly preventable tragedy. The collision would not have occurred had the Jeep stayed in its lane, but the deaths would not have occurred had the victims been properly restrained.

The three unrestrained 11 year olds should have been in booster seats (e.g., the Clek Oobr), while the unrestrained 6 year old should have been in a combination seat (e.g., the Frontier 90). The adults, of course, should have been wearing their seat belts.

Lindesmith was indicted in May and charged with vehicular homicide and vehicular assault. She pled not guilty.

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Cayden Thomas Fitch, 18, and Michael Joseph Moylett, 69 were killed around 7:04 PM on 4/5/14 close to Dallas, OR on Highway 22. Fitch was in a 1995 Ford Ranger while Moylett was in a 2011 Toyota RAV4. Bryan, 43, Fitch’s father, an OSP trooper, was off duty and seriously injured in the passenger seat, while Moylett’s passenger, his wife, Estella, 61, was also seriously injured.

How:
Per police reports, Fitch was eastbound on the highway and attempting to pass a car. It was a two lane highway. He did not complete the maneuver and crashed head-on with a westbound RAV4. All occupants wore seat belts and airbags deployed. The Ranger stopped after the crash in the middle of the highway, while the RAV4 came to rest on the highway’s north side. Fitch and Moylett died at the scene.

Why:
It is unclear why Fitch crashed into Moylett, but given the fact that he was a younger driver and it was close to nighttime, it is likely that his lack of experience combined with the low visibility may have played a role. It is unclear at this time if Fitch or Moylett were speeding. Whatever the reason, the deaths of the drivers while the front passengers survived with serious injuries suggest the crash was a moderate or small frontal offset crash.

The 1995 Ranger weighs 3153 lbs and comes with a “good” IIHS frontal score. It was impacted by a 2011 RAV4 that weighs approximately 3500 lbs. As a result, the Ranger occupants faced 11% more force than they’d have faced colliding with another Ranger, placing them at a slight disadvantage. The RAV4 occupants experienced 10% less force.

Given the likely speeds of the collision (at least 65 mph, the state speed limit), the collision likely imparted at least 670KJ of energy into the Ranger. The Ranger frontal impact test simulates 229KJ of energy (a Ranger impacting another at 40 mph). In other words, the Ranger occupants faced 293% of the force they’d have experienced in the type of crash their truck was rated for. Given the speed of the collision, their odds of survival were low, but possible, reflected in the survival of the passenger, Fitch’s father.

The RAV4 frontal test simulated 254KJ of energy (a RAV4 impacting another at 40 mph), indicating that its occupants would have faced 238% of the forces his SUV was rated to safely withstand, given that the Ranger imparted 604KJ of energy into the RAV4. While these were still tremendous forces, their odds of survival should still have been significantly better, and this was reflected in the passenger’s survival.

However, while the RAV4 does have a “good” overall score, its subscore for head/neck protection is only “acceptable”, as the test dummy head was observed to impact the steering wheel through the airbag in the 40 mph tested crash. It is likely that such an impact at the much higher speeds of the crash is what led to the death of Moylett. Similarly, Moylett was significantly older than Fitch, and advancing age is a known risk in fatal collisions. All of these factors combined to make this a collision where fatalities were observed in the higher weight vehicle, an unusual occurrence in most of the cases I study.

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Who:
Chelsea Northrup, 21, of Saline, was killed at around 9:56 PM Sunday night on 5/4/14 in Freedom Township, MI, on Parker Rd south of Scio Church Rd. She drove a southbound gray 2007 Ford Fusion, and was hit by Garrett Roe, 36, who was northbound and crossed the center line in his silver 2013 Ford F-150. He was drunk and using his cell phone, and had non-life threatening injuries. Chelsey died at the scene.

How:
Per police reports, Roe was northbound and drunk when his cell phone rang. He claimed to have reached for his phone, removed his eyes from the road, crossed the center line, and struck the other vehicle. Police additionally suspected alcohol was related to the crash.

Why:
This is another sad case of drunk driving mixed with distracted driving from cell phone use. One third of fatal crashes in the US continue to be directly attributable to alcohol use, and this claimed Chelsey’s life that night.

Investigating the physics of the crash, it is sadly not surprising that Northrup died while the F-150 occupant lived, as her vehicle was massively outweighed by the Ford. The 2007 Fusion weighs 3384 lbs and comes with a “good” IIHS frontal score. It was impacted by a 2013 F-150, that weighs 5199 lbs, or 154% of the Fusion’s weight.

As a result, the Fusion’s driver automatically faced 54% more force in the collision than she would have if she’d collided with another Fusion, placing her at a severe disadvantage in the collision that would not have existed had we placed greater restrictions on manufacturers’ abilities to create and citizens’ abilities to drive needlessly heavy vehicles on our roads.

Given the likely speeds of the collision (~55 mph), the collision likely imparted at least 713KJ of energy into the Fusion. The Fusion frontal impact test simulates 245KJ of energy (a Fusion impacting another at 40 mph). In other words, the Fusion driver faced 291% of the force she’d have experienced in the type of crash her car was rated for. Given the speed of the collision, particularly combined with the “acceptable” head/neck subscore of the Fusion, her odds of survival were, sadly, quite small.

The F-150’s frontal test simulates 377KJ of energy (a Ford impacting another at 40 mph), indicating that its occupants would have faced 123% of the forces the vehicle was rated to safely withstand, given that the Fusion imparted 464KJ of energy into the F-150. This was clearly a survivable collision for the Ford’s occupants, which was reflected in the driver’s survival and lack of severe injuries.

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