A 49-year-old Belle woman was seriously injured Saturday night after she swerved to avoid a deer and crashed her Jeep Cherokee into a tree on Highway M, authorities say. The crash happened around 7:04 p.m. roughly 75 miles east of Maries Road 305, totaling her vehicle and sending her to the hospital by ambulance.
According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol, the woman was driving a 2005 Jeep Cherokee west on Highway M when a deer entered the roadway and she swerved to avoid it, as first reported by ABC 17 News. The Jeep ran off the left side of the road and struck a tree. A crash-report excerpt from the Missouri State Highway Patrol states that the crash occurred as a deer entered the roadway into the path of the vehicle.
EMS crews transported the woman to University Hospital for treatment, per the same crash report. Her vehicle was described as totaled.
Fall Is Peak Season for Deer Strikes in Missouri
The Belle crash comes as deer-related wrecks climb across the state heading into the colder months. Missouri recorded 2,829 traffic crashes involving deer in 2025, averaging one strike roughly every 3.1 hours, with those crashes causing six deaths and 435 injuries, according to the Missouri State Highway Patrol as reported by KRCG. Nearly a quarter of those crashes, 22.4 percent, happened in urban areas.
The station also reports that most deer-related crashes occur between October and December, with November producing the highest number, and that collisions are more likely between 8 and 9 p.m. Deer tend to be more active during fall evenings and nights, and rut-season behavior can push them to cross roads more often, the outlet notes.
MoDOT officials have pointed to a similarly narrow window of risk. The agency says most deer-vehicle collisions happen in October and November, particularly from 6 to 7 a.m. and 6 to 9 p.m., according to KMBC. The outlet adds that Missouri ranked 15th nationally for deer-vehicle collisions in the year before its report, citing a State Farm annual report.
Why Safety Officials Warn Against Swerving
Both the Missouri State Highway Patrol and MoDOT caution drivers against swerving when a deer darts into the road, even though that instinct is common in moments of panic. MSHP reminds motorists that swerving to avoid a deer can lead to a more serious crash, the patrol said in comments carried by KRCG. MoDOT's warning is similarly direct: swerving can cause motorists to lose control and travel off the road or into oncoming traffic, the agency told KMBC.
A separate analysis published on ScienceDirect notes that Missouri logged 3,639 deer-vehicle collisions in 2020 alone, resulting in 348 injuries and five deaths, and suggests that flashing road signs at known hotspots could help reduce such crashes.
A Recent Fatal Crash Shows the Stakes
The dangers of deer darting into traffic were starkly illustrated in a separate, fatal crash in Boone County on Highway 40 on a Thursday night, according to KRCG's crash-report coverage. In that incident, a deer struck by an eastbound Chevrolet Equinox was propelled into the westbound lane directly into the path of an oncoming Jeep Renegade. The Jeep's driver was pronounced dead at the scene, even though the crash report noted both drivers were wearing seatbelts. The patrol's report said the crash marked Troop F's 56th fatality of 2026.
No further details about the Belle woman's condition or long-term prognosis have been released. As deer activity continues to peak through the fall, officials are urging drivers on rural highways like Highway M to stay alert, slow down in known crossing areas, and resist the urge to swerve if an animal suddenly appears.
