Skip to content

Holiday accidents far too abundant

Is anyone paying attention to the constant messages issued?
19913047_web1_icbc-logo

The warning signs are everywhere this time of the year.

Be careful driving, be careful walking, be careful doing this, be careful doing that. In general, just be careful.

Sometimes it might sound like a nagging parent on your case constantly, but there’s a good reason for the messages of caution.

Dangers are essentially lurking on every corner in life and, despite countless incidents of death or serious injury you hear about every day on the news, the messages need to be repeated because few people seem to pay attention.

The holiday season can be particularly devastating for something to happen to a loved one. Not that it’s any better at other times of the year, but the effect seems magnified during the period from Christmas and into the new year.

Just ask anyone whose world has been turned upside down by an accident at this time of the year. The impact will weigh heavily every time the holidays come around.

In most cases, these incidents or accidents could have been avoided if someone exercised even a bit of restraint.

ICBC issues a series of press releases throughout the year. Since cars and pedestrians aren’t a great mix at the best of times, holidays are even worse. Cyclists can easily be added to the mix to make a potential recipe for disaster at almost every turn.

“Almost double the number of pedestrians are injured in crashes from October to January as the weather changes and daylight hours decrease,” says ICBC.

“Casualty crashes due to driving too fast for the conditions increase by a staggering 87 per cent across B.C. in December compared to October,” says ICBC.

Another one: “ICBC is asking drivers to prioritize safety over finding the perfect parking spot. Last year, there were about 96,000 crashes that happened in parking lots.”

And still more from ICBC recently: “With increased traffic and unpredictable road conditions, it’s important for everyone to be prepared and drive smart. Over the Christmas holidays and New Year’s, 530 people are injured and two people are killed in 2,000 crashes every year in B.C. That’s one crash every three minutes.”

Need we say more?



Don Bodger

About the Author: Don Bodger

I've been a part of the newspaper industry since 1980 when I began on a part-time basis covering sports for the Ladysmith-Chemainus Chronicle.
Read more