The roads can be treacherous, and not just in the wake of the first accident you rubberneck by. A secondary crash, or an accident occurring as a result of another collision, is not just a possibility but a grim reality that the Colorado State Patrol is spotlighting during Crash Responder Safety Week.
With more than 880 secondary crashes recorded by the Colorado State Patrol since 2021, it's evident that this isn't a rare occurrence. These crashes don't just happen amid Colorado's treacherous weather either, they often occur under clear skies, peaking from November to January. Despite the Patrol's efforts to mitigate these incidents, their data, which spans from 2021 through November 2024, indicates that a significant portion, specifically 35%, did occur in adverse weather conditions like snow, or fog.
If you're traversing Colorado's highways, you might want to be particularly vigilant on certain stretches. Data call out Interstate 25 with a concerning 330 secondary crashes, trailed by Interstate 70 (208), I-76 (29), Highway C470 (26), and Highway 24 (20), as hotspots. According to Col. Matthew C. Packard, the chief of the Colorado State Patrol, first responders are acutely aware of the dangers they face while working at crash scenes. He emphasized, "They work to investigate thoroughly and clear a scene as quickly as possible, despite how long it can feel to motorists caught in traffic related to a crash," according to Colorado State Patrol.
The data reveals that human error is a prime contributor to secondary crashes, with the top three culprits being following too closely, inattentiveness, often in the form of distracted driving and speeding. A salient point here is the 'Colorado Move Over' law, which in its latest update in August 2023, further asserted protections for emergency responders. When drivers in Colorado see an emergency vehicle, they now must either move over one lane from that vehicle or if that's not possible, slow down to a safe speed, 25 MPH in a 40 MPH zone and by at least 20 MPH when the speed limits are 45 MPH or higher.
