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Accident Statistics From
The National
Safety Council
-
Accidents rob
Americans of more years of life before age 65 than any
other cause of death.
-
One-in-eight drivers
will be involved in an accident involving injuries or
property damage in the next 12 months.
-
About 4,500 teens from
ages 13-19 are fatally injured in passenger vehicle
accidents every year.
-
Over 40,000 of us die in
accidents in our homes each year.
-
Annually, about 30,000
Americans are killed in accidents that occur in public
places.
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Annual fatality statistics from the National Safety Council 2008
Injury Facts publication. Includes about 5,000
on-the-job fatalities.
Motor Vehicle
44,700
Poisoning
25,300
Falls
21,200
Choking
4,100
Drowning
3,800
Fires, Flames and Smoke
2,800
Mechanical Suffocation
1,100
Natural Heat or Cold
800
All Other*
16,200
Total
120,000
*
Most important types included are: firearms, struck by or against
object, machinery, electric current, and air, water, and rail transport.
As noted, the lifetime odds of
being killed in an accident are approximately 1-in-30
for males, and 1-in-50 for females. As difficult as that may be to
believe, the facts support the statement. Rounding the numbers for the
sake of clarity, here's how they are arrived at:
Each
year, approximately 2,000,000 males and 2,000,000 females are born in
the U.S., and over 70,000 males and 40,000 females die in accidents. The
number of people killed in each age bracket stays relatively constant
every year, i.e., the number of one-year-olds killed is about the same,
as with two-year-olds, and 55-year-olds.
During a
male's lifetime, over 70,000 of his peers will be killed in some type of
accident. Dividing 2,000,000 by 70,000+ gives us the 1-in-30
approximation. Likewise, dividing 2,000,000 by 40,000+ gives us the
1-in-50 approximation for females.
Major
causes of additional male deaths: Drunk Driving (9000); Motorcycles
(3600); Pedestrians (2000); Drug Overdoses (5000); Drowning (2000); Work-related
(4000).
Over 40,000 of us die every year in motor
vehicle accidents, which equates to 1-in-100 lifetime odds of dying in a
motor vehicle accident. This includes pedestrians and motorcyclists.
The
U.S. is not as safe as many other countries. A number of
industrialized countries
have lower fatal accident rates than the U.S.; some of them are
significantly safer to live in.
* Annual
accidental deaths per 100,000, based on the latest year available from
the World Health Organization:
Israel (19.0); Netherlands (20.6); United Kingdom (22.0); Germany (22.6);
Australia (24.9);
Argentina (26.3); Canada (28.1); Spain (28.8); New Zealand (30.1); Chile (30.3); Japan (31.3);
Austria (33.1); United States (38.1); Sweden (38.7); France
(40.0).
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