Fayette County is located just southwest of the very heart of Ohio, and is home to over 28,000 residents. Deriving its name from the Marquis de Lafayette, Fayette County covers 407 square miles and is surprisingly free of waterways for a county in Ohio. Fayette County is also unique in that it lists the Washington Court House as its seat, rather than a city or township.
Despite having a relatively modest population, Fayette County has only 14,909 residents listed as living in the various townships throughout the county. There are only a few townships in Fayette County with four-digit populations, such as: Union with 3,808 residents, Jefferson with 2,766, Paint with 1,905, Wayne with 1,367, and Concord with just 1,068 residents. There are an equal number of smaller townships with three-digit populations, including: Madison with 946 residents, Perry with 945, Jasper with 857, Marion with 748, and Green with only 499 total residents. It is worth noting that smaller data sets, such as three- and four-digit population centers, are subject to statistical aberrations as a result of their small size.
Overall, Fayette County is a fairly dangerous place for motorists on a per capita basis, with a grand total of 607 traffic accidents on record in 2008 and another 589 in 2008. What is even more alarming is the fact that there were 9 fatal traffic accidents in 2007 that resulted in a total of 13 deaths, and another four traffic-fatalities reported in 2008. Four of the traffic fatalities in 2007 were alcohol related, and three of the aforementioned deaths occurred as a result of a single traffic accident in the Township of Madison. Additionally, 31 of the total traffic accidents n 2007 were linked to alcohol. 2008 saw a marked decrease in alcohol-related traffic accidents in Fayette County, with only 26 on record for the entire county and not a single alcohol-related traffic fatality being recorded that year.
On the whole, traffic accident rates in Fayette County seem to scale reasonably well with population. That is to say that larger population centers in Fayette County seem to be more accident prone, which is to be expected. For example, the Township of Union reported a total of 177 traffic accidents in 2007 and another 170 in 2008, while the Township of Jefferson recorded a total of 143 in 2007 and again in 2008. The number of traffic-related deaths per year is far less stable, with Jefferson claiming a pair in 2007 while Union only reported a single death that year. 2008 saw both townships close the year out without a single traffic-related fatality on the books.
It is also worth noting that there was only a single unknown and/or unattributable traffic accident in 2007, which happened in the Township of Madison. This is not unexpected, as it tends to be easier to find damaged vehicles and explained unusual traffic accidents in smaller townships. What is unexpected is the fact that there were eight unexplained or unattributable traffic accidents on record in 2008, nearly half of which occurred in Jefferson. Union recorded two such unexplained events, and Jasper, Paint, and Perry all experienced a single such traffic accident.
If you’ve been seriously injured or have lost a loved one in a Perry, Madison Township, or Union truck / car accident, call the Fayette County auto accident and wrongful death attorneys / lawyers at Chester Law Group at 800-218-4243 or order your FREE BOOK entitled The Insider’s Guide to Handling Ohio Accident Claims at www.ChesterLaw.com.