The wreckage of a Nissan sedan is shown among landscaping plants after a fatal single-vehicle crash in Summerlin Friday Aug. 21, 2020.
Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2020 | 6:55 p.m.
So far in 2020, Las Vegas-area roads have been deadlier than last year, even as a global pandemic shut down swaths of the state earlier this year, reducing traffic for weeks, according to Nevada Department of Transportation statistics.
From January to November, 152 people died in 143 crashes in Clark County, which is 11 more fatalities than the same period in 2019, statistics show.
Only March, May and July didn’t see increases in deaths in Nevada, where 235 people have perished.
In Clark County, 26 of those killed weren’t wearing seatbelts; 55 were pedestrians, and 29 were on a motorcycle.
Some crashes have been more violent and garnered more attention than others, although all are investigated thoroughly and each death leaves grieving loved ones behind.
In July, a reckless motorist spliced her car in two, killing her baby. Metro Police allege the woman was drunk and racing her son’s father.
Last month, Michelle Weissman was riding her bike when a van approached her and she was slapped to the ground by the passenger, who also fell and died.
Impairment and speeding have been the major causes of crashes in past years, and it’s not different this year, NDOT said.
With campaigns, the Zero Fatalities program and police departments have pleaded with motorists about the dangers of reckless and drunken driving, but people keep getting behind the wheel when they’re not supposed to and driving in ways cars weren’t intended to be driven.
But the campaigns continue, and this week they will try again by acknowledging National Seatbelt Day on Saturday.
