158 CRASHES IN
IOWA, IA
2015

In total, 3 motorists were killed and 55 were injured in crashes. Additionally, one pedestrian and one cyclist were injured. There were no fatalities recorded for pedestrians or cyclists during this period.

Crashes occurred most frequently on Fridays, with 29 incidents recorded, and Mondays, with 28 incidents. The most common time for crashes was the 7 a.m. hour, which saw 17 crashes, followed by the 4 p.m. hour with 16. The majority of collisions, 93 out of 158, happened during daylight hours.

Of the 158 crashes, 72.2% (114 crashes) resulted in no injuries. The remaining crashes involved possible injuries (15.2%), minor injuries (10.8%), serious injuries (0.6%), or fatalities (1.3%). There were 2 fatal crashes recorded, which resulted in a total of 3 deaths.

Severity is per crash event (most severe injury). 2 fatal crash events resulted in 3 persons killed.

The most common contributing factor cited in crashes was an animal in the roadway, which was noted in 38 incidents (24.1%). Other leading factors included drivers losing control (17 crashes, 10.8%), running off a straight road (12 crashes, 7.6%), and failing to yield the right-of-way at a stop sign (10 crashes, 6.3%).

The majority of crashes occurred in clear weather and on dry roads. Specifically, 75 crashes (47.5%) happened in clear conditions, and 86 crashes (54.4%) were on dry road surfaces. Collisions in daylight accounted for 93 incidents, representing 58.9% of all crashes.

Among the 307 individuals involved in crashes, the most represented age groups were 26-34 years old (56 people) and 55-64 years old (49 people). The most frequent vehicle makes involved were Chevrolet (50 vehicles), Ford (48 vehicles), and Toyota (13 vehicles).

The leading major cause for crashes was contact with an animal, accounting for 38 incidents. This was followed by drivers losing control (17 crashes), running off a straight road (12 crashes), and failing to yield the right-of-way from a stop sign (10 crashes).

The most frequent first harmful event was a collision with another vehicle in traffic, which occurred in 62 crashes. The second most common event was a collision with an animal, accounting for 38 incidents. Collisions with fixed objects like ditches (12) or parked vehicles (13) were also notable.

A majority of crashes, 75 incidents, occurred at non-intersection locations. Four-way intersections were the most common type of junction for crashes, accounting for 29 incidents, followed by T-intersections with 7 crashes.

Passenger cars were the most common vehicle type involved in crashes, with 100 units. Sport utility vehicles and four-tire light trucks were equally represented with 46 vehicles each. Tractor/semi-trailers were involved in 16 crashes.

The vast majority of vehicles involved in crashes, 172, were at locations with no traffic controls present. For crashes where traffic controls were a factor, stop signs were the most common, noted in 25 instances, followed by traffic signals in 8 instances.

Frontal impacts were the most common, with the primary area of damage being the front of the vehicle in 50 cases. This was followed by damage to the front driver-side corner (23 cases) and the middle of the driver's side (22 cases), indicating a prevalence of head-on and angle collisions.

The majority of crashes within municipal limits occurred in Hampton, which recorded 60 incidents. Sheffield followed with 7 crashes, and Alexander had 1 crash.

Crashes predominantly occurred on paved roadways, which accounted for 143 incidents. Unpaved surfaces, such as gravel roads, were the location for 15 crashes, representing 9.5% of the total.

Among roadway-related contributing factors, adverse surface conditions such as wet or icy roads were the most cited, contributing to 21 crashes. Other factors like debris, ruts, or work zones were each noted in only one crash.

The most common estimated property damage cost was in the $1,500 to $7,500 range, which applied to 100 crashes. There were 49 crashes with damage estimated between $7,500 and $25,000, and 5 crashes with damage exceeding $25,000.

Single-vehicle, non-collision events such as running off the road were the most frequent manner of collision, accounting for 63 crashes or 39.9% of the total. Rear-end collisions were the second most common type, with 21 incidents (13.3%), followed by broadside collisions with 17 incidents (10.8%).

The vast majority of vehicles, 142, were moving straight ahead immediately prior to the crash. The next most common pre-crash actions were being legally parked (23 vehicles) and turning left (18 vehicles).

Of the 307 people involved in crashes, 292 were drivers. The next largest group was passengers, with 13 individuals. The data also includes one pedestrian and one bicyclist.

Among all 307 people involved in crashes, 3 sustained fatal injuries and 3 had serious injuries. An additional 22 people had minor injuries and 32 had possible injuries, for a total of 57 individuals injured.

Based on available data for a subset of occupants, 43 individuals were recorded as using both a shoulder and lap belt. Four individuals were recorded as using no safety equipment. One person was noted as wearing a DOT-compliant helmet.

The distribution of crashes was nearly even between single-vehicle incidents (77 crashes) and two-vehicle incidents (74 crashes). There were also 7 crashes that involved three vehicles.