Napa Roads Shut Down
I’m Ed Smith, a Napa car accident lawyer. On Saturday, January 22, 2017 authorities of Napa restricted access to roadways in order to keep drivers from areas that had seen dangerous flooding due to Napa’s unusually heavy rainfall.
According to the county Office of Emergency Services, officers of Napa County began to restrict access to Milton Road on Edgerly Island, a small island just off the Napa River in the southernmost part of Napa County, due to flooding of local roadways. The roads were open most of the day, but needed to be monitored and restricted in the afternoon once the rains started to fall more heavily.
Flash Flood Alert
The department announced that the partial shutdown of the road, would be happening as an emergency flash flood alert, was sent to area residents just before 4:30 p.m. While smaller cars were completely disallowed from navigating the flooded roadways, officers allowed larger vehicles to travel through.
Drivers and residents of Edgerly Island were warned that a full closure of the roadway could become necessary. The agency indicated that factors that would have contributed to a full closure of the street, starting from the intersecting train tracks and continuing south, might include the continued heavy rainfall and the Napa River approaching its high tide at 11 p.m.
Driving in Rainy Weather
According to the Federal Highway Administration, almost a quarter of all automobile collisions in the United States are related to the weather. Of weather-related accidents, some 74 percent of them happen on wet pavement and 46 percent while it is raining. In contrast, accidents that occur when roads are icy account for only 12 percent of accidents nationwide while accidents that occur on slushy or snowy pavement are only at 14 percent. This shows us that rainy or wet roads are contributing factors in five times as many accidents as are snowy or icy roads. Drivers have a tendency to slow down and exercise more caution on icy roads. However, drivers are less likely to drive on rainy or wet roads with the same caution.
Rainy Insurance Tips
If you are in an auto accident while it is raining, it is a good idea to try to get out of the car and take pictures of the scene. Many drivers, in order to avoid getting wet, will opt to stay in their cars while police and other responders sort things out. However, having photo evidence that can demonstrate the lighting conditions, wetness of the road, and other important details can give investigators important information that they might not otherwise be able to obtain.
Napa Car Accident Lawyer
I’m Ed Smith, a Napa car accident lawyer. If you or someone you love has suffered serious injuries as the result of a car accident, please call me at (707) 564-1900 for free, friendly advice. When calling from a city outside of the immediate area, use my toll free number at (800) 404-5400.
For more than 35 years, I’ve been working hard to help Northern California residents recover compensation in cases involving wrongful death and personal injury.
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I’m a member of the Million Dollar Advocates Forum. The forum is comprised of top rated trial lawyers in the United States who have obtained multiple million dollar case verdicts and settlements.
See the results I have obtained for my clients here: Past Verdicts and Settlements page.
I am the founder of AutoAccident.com.
:ms/bw