In the late evening hours of Jan. 31, 2015, two Oklahoma Highway Patrol troopers, Trooper Nicholas Dees and Trooper Keith Burch, were dispatched to investigate a tractor-trailer collision on Interstate 40 in Seminole County.
Both troopers were standing outside their patrol vehicles doing the investigation of the collision when another driver failed to yield to the trooper's warning lights, traveled into the collision site, striking both troopers. Trooper Dees was killed instantly and Trooper Burch received serious injuries, unable to return to work for over a year. During the course of the investigation into the incident, it was found that the driver of the vehicle had been using his cell phone to send and receive text messages, and even had been utilizing social media while driving. The driver of the vehicle was convicted of manslaughter and is now out of prison on probation.
As a result of this incident, the Trooper Nick Dees law went into effect Nov. 1, 2015. The law states “ It is unlawful for any person to operate a motor vehicle on any street or highway while using a handheld electronic device to manually compose, send or read an electronic text message while the motor vehicle is in motion.”
In honor of the sacrifice that Troopers Dees and Burch made, the OHP has joined forces with other agencies across Oklahoma for the Trooper Nicholas Dees Distracted Driving Emphasis. The emphasis will take place beginning Jan. 15, 2022 and run through Jan. 31, 2022.
According to the OHP and the Oklahoma Highway Safety office, here are a few statistics for the year 2020.
1. In Creek County, there were 11 distracted driving injury collisions and 84 distracted driving collisions.
2. Statewide there were 41 fatal collisions, 1069 injury collisions and 7,290 total distracted driving collisions.
3. Statewide most distracted collisions occurred during the hours of 3–7 p.m. and occurred on weekdays with Friday having the most.
4. Statewide the age group of 20-24 were the cause of distracted collisions, followed by 15-19 years old and 25-29 age groups.
5. Statewide approximately 43.7 percent of distracted driving collisions occur within a city.
Distracted driving is not just limited to cell phone usage. Distracted driving is anything that takes the driver's attention away from driving such as applying make-up, eating, drinking, adjusting the radio, visiting with passengers, etc.
Statistic show that driving at 55 mph is covering 80.6667 feet per second. The average driver responding to a text message takes the driver's attention away for five seconds. Multiply that five seconds times 80,667 feet is 403 feet. That is greater than a football field which is 300 feet. This can mean life and death for the distracted driver, the family in their car stopped in traffic, a first responder, a construction worker, when the distracted driver has approached a scene on the roadway where traffic has come to a stop for some unexpected reason.
The OHP is asking that if you are going to be operating a vehicle that you give your undivided attention to driving and be aware of your surroundings at all times. Some knowledgeable suggestions from the OHP are:
1. Use the DO NOT DISTURB setting on your cell phone while driving and return your calls or messages when you have stopped driving.
2. If you must use your cell phone, setup Blue Tooth Hands Free setting between your vehicle and phone.
3. Avoid eating or drinking while driving.
4. Prior to driving, make sure to have everything adjusted in your vehicle before taking off. If you need to adjust something, pull over to a safe location and do your adjusting there.
5. Limit your conversation with passengers and focus on your driving.
6. While in your vehicle, avoid any type of multi tasking such as applying your makeup or adjusting your radio.
7. Avoid overly focusing on collisions that have already happened and are off the roadway or anything outside the vehicle that would take your attention away from your driving or what is in front of you while operating the vehicle.
Distracted driving crashes are 100 percent avoidable. It is the mission of the OHP and Oklahoma Highway Safety office that this enforcement and education campaign will help lower the number of distracted related crashes in 2022.