Recent winter weather brings rise in accidents

This week, snowfall blanketed much of southeastern Idaho, making road travel more dangerous.

“Really, it’s nothing new that we’re talking about,” Idaho State Police Lt. Mike Winans said. “We’ve been seeing lots of crashes.”

To put it in perspective, “on Monday, we ended up with 40 slide-offs, nine crashes. The next day was a little bit slower. I think we only have 17 slide-offs and a few reportable crashes.”

The past few days haven’t been as bad since the weather has lightened up a bit. But with more precipitation headed towards the region, Winans reminds drivers to be responsible.

“I have a new driver at my house and I’ve given her the speech that in the winter everything needs to slow down. Your breaking, your acceleration, all that stuff.”

In addition to your actions behind the wheel, Winans said properly maintaining your vehicle can be the difference maker between staying on the road and ending up in a ditch.

“It never ceases to amaze me, the condition of some people’s vehicle,” he said. “If you can just take care of your vehicle and drive appropriately, you’re probably not gonna have any issues.”