Two men were involved in a single-vehicle rollover accident on I-294, according to CBS News.

In the very early morning hours Monday, the vehicle rolled over heading southbound on I-294 on the 95th street ramp.

According to police, one of the men died, and the other was taken to Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn in serious condition.

Motor vehicle accidents were the third leading cause of traumatic brain injuries in the United States. This kind of injury accounted for about 14 percent of TBIs from 2006 to 2010, according to the CDC.

Only looking at TBI-related deaths, motor vehicle crashes were the second leading cause of TBI-related deaths at 26 percent from 2006 to 2010.

About 1.3 million people die in car accidents every year globally, which amounts to about 3,287 deaths per day. In addition, 20 to 50 million are injured or disabled in car accidents globally every year. The majority of car accidents affect people ages 15 to 44.

More than 37,000 people die in the United States in car accidents every year. That amounts to about 101 deaths per day due to car accidents. In addition, 2.35 million are injured or disabled.

Driving danger is higher during the holidays. The 100 deadliest days for teens on the road is the time between Memorial Day and Labor Day, which falls on summer vacation for most students. Reports do not state whether or not alcohol was involved in this accident. During Labor Day weekend in 2010, 147 people were killed in the United States due to drunk driving, which was 37 percent of highway fatalities during that weekend.

To my calculations, that means that about 397 people died from road crashes during Labor Day weekend in 2010. That is about 31 deaths more than average per day. The amount of deaths per day during Labor Day weekend in 2010 due to road crashes amounts to 1.3 times the number of average deaths per day due to road crashes.

No doubt, Labor Day weekend can be dangerous. It’s supposed to be a time for relaxation, barbecues, and spending time with family and friends. However, one needs to be extra cautious when taking to the road during the holidays.

About 40 percent of fatal rollover accidents were speed related, according to the NHTSA. Nearly half of fatal rollover accidents involved alcohol. Nearly 85 percent of fatal rollover crashes are single-vehicle crashes. More than 90 percent were involved in routine driving maneuvers. The data suggest that driver behavior, such as distraction, impaired driving, speeding, and inattentiveness, contribute to rollover crashes.

Gordon Johnson

Attorney Gordon Johnson is one of the nations leading brain injury advocates. He is Past-Chair of the TBILG, a national group of more than 150 brain injury advocates. He has spoken at numerous brain injury seminars and is the author of some of the most read brain injury web pages on the internet.

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