The Wyandot County Safe Community Coalition has reported one traffic fatality occurring on Wyandot County roadways in the third quarter of 2025 (July-September). This is the second traffic fatality to occur in the county in 2025.
According to crash data from the Ohio State Highway Patrol, over the third quarter there were a total of 162 traffic crashes in Wyandot County. Of these, 74% resulted in property damage, 20% caused possible or minor injury, and an additional 4% resulted in serious injury.
Crash variables that were factors in third quarter Wyandot County injury crashes include preventable behaviors including driving impaired by drugs and/or alcohol, distracted driving, speeding, failure to use a seatbelt, failure to yield, and running red lights or stop signs.
As summer travel winds down and we transition into school and holiday travel in the fourth quarter of the year, remember the basics of traffic safety:
- Never drive impaired by drugs (including prescription) or alcohol. When drugs like marijuana or alcohol are part of the plans, designate a sober driver and don’t be afraid to ask for help or to step in if a friend or family member plans to drive impaired.
- Never drive distracted. There are three types of distracted driving. Visual distractions are those that take eyes off the road. Manual distractions are those that take hands off the wheel. Cognitive distractions are those that take minds off the task of driving. Texting combines all three types of distraction but is not the only way that distracted driving occurs.
- Don’t let the habit of speeding catch up with you. Speed limits are put in place to protect everyone who uses our roadways. Speeding reduces the ability to steer safely around the unexpected. Speed also affects your safety even when you are driving at the speed limit but too fast for road conditions, such as during bad weather or nighttime driving in poorly lit areas.
- Buckle up. It’s a habit that protects against impaired, aggressive, and distracted drivers. Seat belts slow people down and spread crash forces over the strongest part of the body. They also keep people in their seats during a crash, preventing injury to others in the car and total ejection, which is almost always deadly.
- Drive defensively. This time of year,Wyandot County roadways see commercial vehicles, school buses, farming equipment, motorcycles, bicycles, pedestrians, and deer. Help yourself and fellow roadway users to get home safely by expecting the unexpected, slowing down, and following traffic safety laws including yielding the right-of-way when appropriate and always coming to a complete stop at stop signs and red lights.
It only takes a moment to become a statistic.Be safe, be smart, and be alert when traveling the roadways this fall.
