Unbelted Pickup Driver Dies In Head-On Crash: MN State Patrol

A pickup driver from Pequot Lakes is dead following a crash in Crow Wing County Thursday. The driver was not wearing his seat belt at the time of the fatal crash, according to the Minnesota State Patrol.

Dennis Lee Goff, 60, was driving a Ford pickup northbound on Highway 371 when he hit a jersey barrier on the right side of the roadway and went across 371 into the southbound lane, where he was hit head-on by a 1998 Peterbilt semi and trailer.

The semi driver, Daniel Thomas Jackson, 60, of Hackensack, did not suffer any injury in the crash.

The crash occurred at 6:31 a.m. Thursday. Road conditions in the crash were reported as dry.

Pickup drivers in Minnesota have the lowest rate of seat belt use, according to a study by state authorities.

• In 2015, 91 unbelted motorists lost their lives on Minnesota roads
• In a five year period (2011 – 2015), 38 percent of the 1,379 people killed while riding in motor vehicles were not wearing seat belts
• In 2015, 77 percent of vehicle occupants who were ejected or partially ejected and died were not wearing a seat belt
• In Minnesota in 2015, seat belts saved an estimated 227 people ages 5 and older

Most Minnesotans buckle up

The 2016 Minnesota Observational Seat Belt Survey results show:

• A 93 percent compliance for front seat occupants
• Males continue to buckle up at a lower rate (90 percent) compared with females (96.5 percent)
• Pickup drivers have the lowest seat belt use
• Pickup truck seatbelt use: 83.6 percent
• Van/Minivan: 92.8 percent
• SUV: 95.2 percent

Minnesota Seat Belt Law

• Minnesota’s seat belt law is a primary offense, meaning drivers and passengers in all seating positions — including in the backseat — must be buckled up or in the correct child restraint.
• Law enforcement will stop and ticket unbelted drivers or passengers. A seat belt ticket is $25 but can cost more than $100 with fees.
• Drivers will be ticketed for unbelted passengers ages 14 and younger. Unbelted passengers age 15 and older will be ticketed directly.

Image via Minnesota State Patrol. The image used is not from this crash.