Two Injured Following a Head-On Crash in Northampton County

Two people suffered severe injuries after a head-on car accident in Stockertown, Northampton County, on December 22. According to news reports, the two-vehicle crash occurred on Route 33 near mile marker 9.7 around 7 a.m. Pennsylvania State Police say one car was traveling south in the northbound lane of Route 33 when it struck another car heading north.

Officials say both drivers were taken to St. Luke’s Hospitals with suspected serious injuries. It’s unknown at this time when the car was traveling the wrong way on Route 33.

Why Are There So Many Wrong Way Accidents in PA?

The car accident in Northampton County is one of many wrong way accidents to occur in the last few weeks around Pennsylvania. Unfortunately, wrong way car crashes have been rising in the past 10 years. According to a recent study by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, an average of 500 deaths occur annually from wrong-way driving crashes on divided highways in the U.S. between 2015 and 2014, a 34% increase from 2010 to 2014.

Wrong-way crashes are roughly 30 times more likely to be fatal compared to other types of accidents, largely due to the combined speed of head-on collisions. Several factors make these collisions especially lethal:

Sudden deceleration – The human body experiences extreme forces as it goes from high speed to a complete stop in a fraction of a second. This rapid deceleration can cause severe internal injuries even if there’s no direct impact to the body.
Limited crumple zone – Modern cars are designed with crumple zones to absorb impact, but head-on collisions often overwhelm these safety features because the front crumple zone is compressed from both directions plus the rapid energy transfer leaves little time for the crumple zones to absorb the impact.
Intrusion into passenger compartment – The extreme forces often cause the engine block and other heavy components to be pushed into the passenger compartment, reducing survival space.
Minimal reaction time – Drivers typically have very little time to take evasive action, especially at highway speeds where closing speeds can exceed 140 mph.

The severity is further compounded by the fact that many head-on collisions occur on rural roads where emergency response times may be longer.

If you lost a loved one in a head-on car collision, a Lehigh Valley car accident lawyer can help you with your wrongful death claim. Contact Munley Law today to schedule a free consultation.

Note: Our team of writers uses secondary sources to produce this post, including local and state media and news sources, regional and state police incident reports, social media platforms, and eyewitness accounts about serious accidents in Pennsylvania. For that reason, if you find any information that is not correct, be sure to contact Munley Law as soon as possible so that we can update the post with the most exact information available. A post will be removed upon request. All information in this post is informational and not intended to be considered legal or medical advice. This post is not a solicitation for business.