Bumper To Bumper

SEBRING - The number of car accidents in Highlands County slightly increased from 2005 to 2006, although the number of fatal accidents went down, according to recently released statistics provided by the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles.

There were 859 total crashes in Highlands County in 2006, five more accidents than the previous year. There were also 21 fatal accidents, down from 33 in 2005. Fatal accidents are calculated based on the number of cars involved, not the number of passenger deaths. For example, if there were multiple deaths in one car during an accident, the number would count as one fatal accident.

"The trends across the state are showing that there are more crashes," said Lt. Doug Dodson, of the Florida Highway Patrol.

"The number of fatalities has probably decreased because more people are wearing seat belts," said Lt. Jess Purvis, of the Highlands County Sheriff's Office. "I would also guess that the number of accidents has increased because the amount of traffic in the county has also (increased)."

Purvis said that he believes there are more full-time county residents than there were in the past, and with that population boom there comes more drivers, increasing the possibility of an accident.

"You don't see as big of decrease (in traffic) as you used to during the summer months," said Purvis. "We have more permanent residents. We've received numbers from studies suggesting that more families are coming in. With those families there are younger drivers."

"When you put those younger drivers, who are in a rush to get to work, or to get to school and you mix them with the older drivers we already have, it's a combination that can lead an increase," said Purvis.

The popularity of U.S. 27 may also have a role in the number of accidents.

"Our county lifeline is U.S. 27 - if you look at the highway, the population density is higher surrounding it, it's easy to see how the amount of traffic flow through the county has increased," said Purvis.

Surprisingly, although the number of deaths in the county decreased, the number of injuries went up. In 2005 there were 724 injuries reported, compared to 746 in 2006.

"Injury numbers are pretty ambiguous, they're not black and white," said Dodson. "The majority of accidents we investigate, though, have injuries with them. If someone complains that they have a sore neck at the scene of an accident, but doesn't receive medical treatment, it's still documented as an injury."

Sebring saw the biggest increase in accidents reported, jumping from 92 in 2005 to 135 in 2006.

"I think the increase comes from the fact that the city has added quite a bit of additional property for us to patrol," said Sebring Police Commander Steve Carr. "Our population has also grown, increasing our chances for accidents."

Carr said that Sebring has only had one fatality this year. There were three fatalities in 2006 and two in 2005.

"We've stayed fairly consistent and low as far as the number of fatalities is concerned," said Carr.

In Lake Placid, numbers increased from 57 crashes in 2005 to 71 crashes in 2006.

"I'm not surprised by the numbers," said Lake Placid Police Chief Phil Williams. "The population on the outskirts of the city has seemed to increase."

Williams said that the police department is doing what it can to make more defensive drivers.

"We've implemented a number of programs including child safety-seat programs and things that can help protect our drivers," said Williams. "We also do a good share of traffic enforcement. We are committed to traffic safety."

Officials in Avon Park said that their numbers differ from those released by the FHP. A spokeswoman in the records office said that they had 393 accidents in 2005, a number that decreased to 352 in 2006. FHP listed that the city had 120 accidents in 2006, down from 143 in 2005.

Highlands County had 91 alcohol-related crashes in 2006, down from 98 in 2005. The number of alcohol-related fatalities also dropped from 16 in 2005 to nine in 2006.

FHP officials said that so far there have been 15 fatal accidents in the county this year, compared to the 12 traffic fatalities for the same time period in 2006.