PUTNAM COUNTY, Mo. — The driver of a day cab semi escaped serious injury after a deer that was hit by another vehicle crashed through the big rig’s windshield and existed through the rear window.
According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol, the accident happened at 12:45 p.m. on Nov. 12 along Highway 136 west of Livonia, Missouri.
State troopers say a pickup truck driven by Courtney Kline, 29, of Unionville, Missouri, was eastbound when she hit a deer in the roadway.
The impact flung the deer into the air, sending it through the cab of the on-coming semi, driven by 50-year-old Jamison Harbison of Richland, Iowa.
Harbison suffered minor injuries and was taken by ambulance to Putnam County Hospital in Unionville. Kline was not hurt.
A new study from Washington University found that the return to standard time, which occurred the weekend of Nov. 11, from daylight saving time dramatically increases the frequency of deer collisions with vehicles.
The researchers pulled data on vehicle collisions from state departments of transportation across the U.S. Of those, about half included time of day and type of animal in vehicle accident data. They found that the rate of motorists hitting deer increased by 16% nationwide following the return to standard time.
West Virginia continues to top the list of states where an individual driver is most likely to hit an animal, with a likelihood of 1 in 35, according to a study by State Farm Insurance.
Montana (1 in 44 chance of a crash), South Dakota (1 in 51 chance), Michigan (1 in 51 chance of a crash) and Wisconsin (1 in 54) are at the top of the list. Rounding out the top 10 states where drivers are most likely to collide with an animal are Pennsylvania, Iowa, Mississippi, North Dakota and Wyoming. The months drivers are most likely to collide with a large animal in the U.S. are (in order) November, October and December.
The Trucker News Staff produces engaging content for not only TheTrucker.com, but also The Trucker Newspaper, which has been serving the trucking industry for more than 30 years. With a focus on drivers, the Trucker News Staff aims to provide relevant, objective content pertaining to the trucking segment of the transportation industry. The Trucker News Staff is based in Little Rock, Arkansas.
