May 15, 2002 By Amy Karpinsky 3 min read

GREENSBURG – A state Department of Transportation official estimated Tuesday that six or seven of the 13 people who have recently died in local traffic accidents would still be alive if they had been wearing their seatbelts. Jay Ofsanik, safety press officer for the state Department of Transportation, said the 13 unbelted fatalities have occurred in the last eight weeks in PennDOT District 12, which includes the counties of Fayette, Greene, Washington and Westmoreland. He said it is estimated that with the usage of lap and shoulder seatbelts, fatal injuries in crashes would be reduced by 45 percent.

“Six or seven of those people should be alive,” he said.

The 10 accidents occurred between March 7 and Friday and the victims ranged in age from 17 months to 85 years old. Of the accidents, nine occurred in Fayette County and one in Greene County.

The dead include a 17-month-old son and his 35-year-old father; a 19-year-old man; an 18-year-old man; a 43-year-old man; a 58-year-old man; an 85-year-old man; a 49-year-old man and a 23-year-old woman; a woman from Maryland (age unknown); a 17-year-old female and an 18-year-old female and a 23-year-old woman.

As a way to encourage seat belt usage, a press conference was held Tuesday to kick off the “Buckle Up PA” campaign. During the campaign, various local police departments will begin a two-week push to encourage seatbelt laws for adults and child seats.

Ofsanik said across the state, the current seatbelt usage rate is 70.6 percent. That figure is a drop of 2/10 of a percent from the previous year.

Lt. Walter Lyons of the Greensburg Police Department said vehicle crashes make no distinction of gender or age. He said 11 high school students in the surrounding counties in the past year lost their lives in crashes without seatbelts.

“Many deaths and injuries could be prevented. Speed kills and seatbelts save lives,” Lyons said.

Other speakers at the press conference included Owen Kirby, the western law enforcement liaison for PennDOT, Pennsylvania State Police Trooper Jeanie Martin, Washington Regional Highway Safety representative Bonnie Pattison and State Farm Insurance representative Jennifer Johnsen.

Pattison said if everyone would buckle up, 12,000 lives each year could be saved nationally and each person would save $820 per year in insurance and taxes.

“It will save your life if you wear a seatbelt,” she said.

She added that if the statewide rate doesn’t increase 5 percent, Pennsylvania would stand to lose millions of dollars in federal highway monies.

Johnsen said traffic accidents are the leading cause of death for people aged 4 to 33. She said 30 million people have died in vehicle accidents since the first one was recorded in 1899.

After the press conference, fire and EMS crews lined various sites on Route 30 in Westmoreland County and Route 119 and Route 40 in Fayette County with patriotic banners depicting the campaign logo.

Uniontown Fire Chief Jim Wood, who was standing beside Engine 4 on Route 40 near the Exxon station, said he was surprised at how many people went by the red, white and blue “Buckle Up PA” sign displayed on the side of the fire truck and put their seatbelts on.

“Evidently it’s going to work,” he said of the campaign to increase seatbelt use.