Alcohol: A Major Contributor to Serious and Fatal Injury

Excessive alcohol consumption accounts for 79,000 fatalities each year in the United States, making it the third leading lifestyle-related cause of death in the country, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The health risks of alcohol extend beyond medical conditions concerning the brain, heart, and liver to unintentional injuries from car accidents, falls, drowning, and burns. Accidents that recently occurred in Los Angeles and Orange counties illustrate the significant role of alcohol intoxication in such incidents, explains an Orange County car accident lawyer.

Last November, an 18-year-old caused the car accident that killed one of his friends and injured three others in Orange County. After a night of drinking, Jesus Manzo Torres drove his friends to Irvine Lake. While traveling at a high rate of speed, Torres lost control of the vehicle and crashed into a tree, the impact cutting the vehicle in two and causing three of the passengers to be ejected. Torres’ legs were severed and his friend, 18-year-old Jorge Cisneros, died on the way to the hospital. Torres was arrested on suspicion of manslaughter and driving under the influence, reported the Orange County Register.

Drinking and driving is a serious traffic safety problem in this country, claiming 10,839 lives in 2009, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s (NHTSA) most current data. That year, alcohol-related motor vehicle crashes accounted for 32 percent of traffic fatalities. Moreover, alcohol contributes to the high incidence of fatal crashes among teenagers, with the 16 to 20-year-old age group accounting for 19 percent of the alcohol-related traffic fatalities in 2009.

Perhaps less notorious than motor vehicle collisions, falls are another serious consequence of alcohol intoxication. Nearly 63 percent of the victims of fatal falls that occurred between 1975 and 1995 tested positive for alcohol, 32 percent of whom were considered intoxicated, according to a study published by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. In addition, a Mothers Against Drunk Driving report titled The Real Facts on Alcohol Use, Injuries and Deaths cited a review of the relevant studies on alcohol consumption that found that 28 percent of the victims of fatal falls had been drinking prior to the accident.

An accident that recently occurred in Long Beach underscores the risk of fatally falling while intoxicated. On a cold December night, 26-year-old Kelly Ryann Dorrell climbed over the railing of the Queen Mary and fell 75 feet into the frigid water. She died from her injuries. According to a representative of the Long Beach Police Department, Dorrell was ‘rather intoxicated’ at the time of the accident, reported the Los Angeles Times.

Given the fact that alcohol slows reaction time and impairs judgment and coordination, it is not surprising that it is a major contributor to accidents resulting in serious and fatal injury, as illustrated by the car accident in Orange County and the fall in Los Angeles County, explains a lawyer. Limiting one’s consumption and avoiding risky activities or those that require a high level of coordination are a few ways to reduce the risk of injury.