A recent crash in the Saxonville section of Framingham caused the death of one driver and sent all the occupants of a second vehicle to the hospital. The crash, which took place early on the evening of September 21, shut down Water Street for some time while Framingham Police investigated and cleared the scene.

The driver who appears to have caused the crash, a Framingham man, died at the scene while the injured victims, a husband and wife and their twelve-year-old son, were reported to have suffered only minor injuries and were treated at UMass Medical Center in Worcester.

Cause Unknown

No obvious reason for the crash has been reported, and police do not expect to file any charges. One eastbound driver crossed the yellow line into the westbound lane, where he hit the other vehicle head-on. According to some witnesses, the first vehicle was seen to swerve more than once before the crash. He may have left a church parking lot a few blocks away immediately before the crash, but that’s not entirely clear.

Head-On Crashes: Common and Lethal

Head-on crashes are difficult to predict and can be just as difficult to avoid. As a driver, you expect others to follow the rules of the road, and it’s a scary surprise when another vehicle suddenly veers into your lane, as happened in this Framingham crash.

Yet head-on crashes are common: A thorough analysis of 2014 data found that there were about 141,000 head-on collisions in the United States that year. While they accounted for only 2.3 percent of all multi-vehicle crashes, they were far more lethal than average. Nearly 10 percent of those who died in crashes were victims of head-on collisions—about eight people every day. Many other victims were seriously injured, around 62,000 that year.

Massachusetts No Exception

Head-on crashes are just as much a problem in Massachusetts as they are everywhere else. We hear about serious ones on a regular basis: A woman was killed in Raynham in July; two people were seriously injured after a head-on at the Sagamore Bridge sparked a five-vehicle collision in August; and only a few days before the Framingham crash, four people were injured—one critically—when one vehicle crossed the median and struck another on 495 in Lawrence.

Framingham Car Accident Lawyer

When you or someone close to you has been the victim of a car crash, whether in a head-on situation or any other type of collision, it’s vitally important that you have an attorney on your side who understands all the issues involved with pursuing compensation for your injuries and any property damage.

At Joel H. Schwartz, PC, our team has years of experience with automobile accident law, and we’ve helped many clients reach successful settlements to their cases. Call 1-800-660-2270 or contact us online through the form below to schedule a free consultation to discuss your situation.