Michigan Motor Vehicle Accident Law Blog

One woman died and two people were injured last week when a van and a pickup truck collided in an intersection. Officers on the scene said alcohol may have been involved in the accident. The 41-year-old driver of the van died shortly after being airlifted to a University of Michigan Health System hospital.

Officers added that they would know more once they had located the driver of the pickup. The driver, whom police did not identify, fled the scene on foot.

Ten people died and 18 were injured in a multiple vehicle accident early Sunday morning. Authorities confirmed that the visibility was severely limited at the time by fog and smoke. The accident occurred on the East Coast, but, thanks to lake-effect snow squalls, those of us in Michigan know the panic and confusion that come with poor visibility on the roads.

Sunday morning, some motorists were able to pull off the highway before they came upon lines of vehicles stopped in the fog. According to one survivor, traffic stopped suddenly and visibility was zero before the first crash.

The Michigan Office of Highway Safety Planning has tallied the results from the most recent "Drunk Driving. Over the Limit. Under Arrest" campaign. The objective of the program is to keep drunk drivers off the roads -- and out of accidents -- during peak times of the year, especially around holidays.

The Christmas to New Year's campaign ran from Dec. 15 to Jan. 2. According to the OHSP, more than 170 law enforcement agencies around the state sent patrols out to get drunk drivers off the roads. Officers from 26 counties participated in the saturation plan.

During the year's first snowfall or rainstorm, it always seems people forget how to drive. They brake when they should accelerate, they forget to signal or they just altogether forget the basic rules of the road. The same may be true with off-road vehicles, as Michigan news outlets have reported at least three snowmobile accidents this week, during the state's first major snowfall.

Two of the crashes resulted in injuries to the riders. One proved fatal. State troopers said they weren't sure yet if alcohol played a role in the more serious accidents.