Article from: www.thenewspaper.com/news/26/2679.asp

2/6/2009
Thousands Injured and Killed in Non-Driving Car Accidents
US Department of Transportation finds 841,000 injured in vehicle accidents that have nothing to do with driving.

Traffic Safety FactsA US Department of Transportation study released last month showed that thousands are injured or killed each year in vehicle-related accidents that are wholly unrelated to driving. A total of of 1747 fatalities and 841,000 injuries are the result each year of non-traffic crashes and non-crash incidents, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). The agency compiled the estimates to provide the first-ever look at the magnitude of accidents that cannot be resolved with a new law enforced with traffic citations.

Among the findings were that a total of 168 individuals are killed each year by falling vehicles with another 88 dying after they themselves fall out of a car. Five are killed by electric windows and three die while locked in the trunk. About 22 percent of injuries are caused while entering or exiting a vehicle. Twenty percent of injuries are caused by car doors while 10,000 find themselves in a hospital after an incident involving a hoist or a jack. NHTSA compiled the information from a number of sources including police reports, hospital records and an injury database maintained by the Consumer Product Safety Commission.

Annual Estimate of Non-crash Injuries by Incident Type



Injured by Closing Door148,000

Overexertion


88,000

Boarding or Alighting: Falls84,000

Struck or Struck by Other Vehicle Part

(not door, hood or trunk)
74,000
Cut by Part of Vehicle68,000

Boarding or Alighting: Other Injuries

(such as strains or sprains)
44,000
Boarding or Alighting: Door Injury36,000
Fall Against Vehicle28,000

Fall From Vehicle

(not boarding or alighting)
28,000

Struck by Other Product

(usually cargo)
20,000
Radiator/Antifreeze Burns9,000

Other Hoist/Jack Incident

(not involving a tire)
8,000
Vehicle Fire Incident3,000
Muffler/Exhaust Pipe Burns

3000

Closing of Vehicle Window2,000
Carbon Monoxide From Vehicle Exhaust2,000
Hoist/Jack Incident With Tire2,000
Tire Explosion1,000
Battery Acid Burn1,000

Hyperthermia in Vehicle

(excessive heat)
<1,000


View a summary of the results in a 150k PDF file at the source link below.

Source: Not-in-Traffic Surveillance 2007 (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 1/29/2009)

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