Although many believe that Miami County draws its name from the famous city in Florida, the word is actually a Native American word that has an English translation which is currently being disputed. What is not debatable is the fact that Miami County is located just west of the heart of Ohio, and is home to just under 100,000 total residents. Of those nearly 100,000 residents, 78,095 live in the townships throughout Miami County, and are the basis for the statistics provided by the Ohio Department of Public Safety.
In terms of road safety, Miami County is on the safe side of average, but just barely. With only 1,323 traffic accidents on record in 2007, and another 1,255 in 2008, Miami County is well within the normal range for Ohio. It is also worth noting that Ohio providers drivers with many challenges due its often inclement weather and wet roads. Thus, the 11 traffic-related fatalities in 2007, and 8 in 2008 are not necessarily high. If anything, these numbers reflect a low countywide traffic-related fatality rate.
The townships in Miami County that recorded the most total traffic accidents in 2007 were: Concord with a grand total of 222, Monroe with 187, Bethel with 183, Springcreek with 154, and Newberry with 133 total traffic accidents on file. 2008 saw many of the same townships report very similar overall crash statistics: Concord with 190 total traffic accidents on the books, Monroe with 169, Bethel with 147, Union with 145, Spring Creek with 140, and Newberry with 109 total crashes.
These figures become more relevant and important when viewed on a per capita basis. For example, Spring Creek is home to just 1,826 residents. This means that if traffic accidents were proportionally related to population size, Spring Creek would have just over 2,200 annual traffic accidents if it had as many residents as the Township of Concord. This particular fact marks the township of Springfield as a particular dangerous place for motorists in Miami County. It is also worth observing that the Township of Springcreek had 10 alcohol-related traffic accidents on file during 2007, the fourth highest in the county behind Bethel (14), Concord (14), and Monroe (13). Another 6 alcohol-related traffic accidents were reported in Springcreek during 2008, which resulted in one fatality.
The comparatively small size of Bethel also marks that particular township of only 4,927 residents as a danger zone for motorists. Reinforcing this particular observation is the fact that Bethel led or tied for the top in the traffic-related fatality list during both 2007 and 2008. With 3 traffic related fatalities on file in 2007, and two the following year, Bethel is another dangerous location for motorists in Miami County.
The Township of Monroe is also worth further investigation, primarily because it has a grand total of 6 unknown and/or unexplained traffic accidents on the books during 2007 and 2008. These figures put Monroe on top of the unexplained traffic accident list in Miami County two years running, but they are not necessarily unusual statistics for a township that is home to 15,339 residents.
If you’ve been seriously injured or have lost a loved one in a Concord Township, Spring Creek Township, or Bethel Township truck / car accident, call the Miami 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.