Lovesick Deer A Hazard To Drivers In Area Forest Preserves

PALOS PARK, IL — Love is in the air, but when it’s between a buck and a doe the romance could spell trouble for motorists driving through area forest preserves. Fall is a prime rutting or mating season for deer, so if you see a stag or doe stumbling out of the woods smoking a cigarette, you’ll know why.

Fall is the time of year when nearly 50 percent of deer vs. car crashes occur. Vehicle crashes involving deer on roads kill nearly 100 people nationwide annually and cost millions of dollars in insurance claims, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation. The average deer/automobile collision results in approximately $2,000 per claim for repairs and injuries.

If you encounter a deer on the road, don't swerve out of the way. Drivers may lose control of their cars or cause a more severe accident. Be extra cautious in the early morning and evening hours when deer are most active, especially driving through the forest preserves. Vehicular crashes involving deer can also happen in urban areas.

Palos Park police offer these tips to avoid hitting deer, especially at peak mating season:

• Obey the speed limit when driving on forest preserve roads, especially from sunset to midnight, and at dawn, when deer are most active.

• Scan the road and shoulders ahead of you. Looking ahead helps provide enough reaction time if a deer is spotted. Also, remember deer often move in groups, so when there is one deer, there are usually more in the area.

• Use high beam headlights if there is no oncoming traffic. Deer may be spotted sooner when using high beams allowing time to slow down, move over or beep your horn in short bursts to scare the deer away from the road.

• If a collision is unavoidable, press the brakes firmly and remain in your lane. Swerving to avoid a deer can often cause a more serious crash or result in drivers losing control of vehicles.

• Most damage from deer collisions occur in the front or on the side of a car. If involved in a crash, call local law enforcement for assistance and then make note of the date, time, street name and take any pictures to help document the incident. Shine your headlights as closely as you can on the animal so that other drivers can avoid hitting it.

• If you do hit a deer, don't go near it, unless you're absolutely sure it's dead; an injured deer could gore or kick you from pain.

• Drivers should always wear a seat belt and should remain awake, alert and sober.