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A reckless driver caused a three-vehicle crash on a busy Ohio interstate when they came to a dead stop after missing an exit and tried merging over during rush hour traffic.
The Ohio Department of Transportation posted a jaw-dropping clip that shows a heavy flow of traffic on Interstate 71 moments before the wreck around 5:24 p.m. near downtown Columbus on April 30, The Columbus Dispatch reported.
In the clip, a red minivan is seen crawling into the frame in the middle lane of the busy three-lane highway as other vehicles zip around it.
The driver of the van appeared to have missed the exit heading towards Dayton and decided to take a risk, coming to a full stop in hopes of cutting across two lanes of traffic.
As the minivan came to a standstill, two other minivans were forced to abruptly stop behind the reckless driver as vehicles in both adjacent lanes continued to speed past them.
However, a large passenger van plowed into the back of the minivan, propelling it forward into the other, causing a multi-vehicle accident.
The driver of the red van, who caused the wreck, then seizes the opportunity to cross over into the left lane and carelessly merge into the exit, driving off.
The reckless driver of the red minivan has not been identified after fleeing from the scene, and no life-threatening injuries were reported, according to the outlet.
“When you are driving along a major interstate and you miss your exit do you: A) keep driving and get off at the next one or B) come to a complete stop, cause a multi-car rear-end crash and then drive away,” The Ohio Department of Transportation prompted its followers in its post.
“HINT: The answer is NEVER B. Do not be this driver.”
Ohio Department of Transportation Press Secretary Matt Bruning told Fox 8 that the driver did the “worst thing you can do on a highway” after missing an exit.
“What this driver did is extremely dangerous and the absolute worst thing you could do,” he said.
According to studies by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, around 94% of motor vehicle accidents are estimated to be caused by driver error.
A nationwide study released by the personal finance website ValuePenguin in April — used data from the NHTSA, Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), and the Fatality and Injury Reporting System Tool (FIRST) — found that reckless driving was responsible for 6.4% of motor vehicle deaths from 2018 to 2022, totaling more than 12,600 fatalities.
In 2021, it led to more than 3,000 deaths, making up 7.1% of that year’s motor vehicle deaths.
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