More people die on Missouri’s highways in the months of October and November than any other months.
The Missouri State Highway Patrol says the overwhelming majority of those crashes are preventable. Troopers want to remind drivers to focus on driving when they are behind the wheel.
“We just ask folks take a second out of their day over the next few months and do the job of driving,” explained Sergeant Collin Stosberg.
He reinforced a lot of the tips drivers have heard before. Encouraging drivers to put down their phone, buckle their seatbelt, obey the speed limit and designate a driver if they plan to drink alcohol.
MSHP records from 2013 to 2015 show October and November had either the highest number of crashes for the year or the highest number of deadliest crashes.
Stosberg said weather changes this time of year, more deer are on the road, and more holiday travelers crowd the streets, a combination that leads to the increase in crashes during these two months.
The sergeant said the hardest part of his job is telling a family their loved one died in a crash, especially if it was a crash that could have been avoided.
“I can't remember all the interesting assignments, or arrests, or people I've assisted, but I can remember those 18 death notifications that I've had to give. That sticks with me. It's something we never like to do and we hope we don't have to do,” Stosberg said.
So far, Missouri, as a state, is on pace to have fewer deadly car crashes than last year. But specifically in the Kansas City metro, troopers have investigated roughly the same amount of fatal crashes as compared to this point in 2016.
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