Deer Crashes Can Happen Anywhere, Anytime

Killen police officer Matt Holden has worked enough crashes involving deer to know they are constantly crossing highways.

"You have to watch out at all times; you never know when they will come out," Holden said. "I work a night shift and I'll see several during the night or early morning. And they can come from anywhere."

It was early Nov. 12 when a deer moved into the patch of Holden's car while he was patrolling and slammed into his police cruiser.

"I never saw (the deer). It was on me and hit the car before I knew what happened," Holden said of the accident that occurred near Shoal Creek Bridge. "I wasn't hurt, the car was. They can do some damage."

It cost $7,500 to repair the police car.

Body shops around the region have seen their share of crashes caused by deer.

"We're not getting as many right now as we did earlier, but we still get a few," said Danny Simpson, of Simpson's Body Shop in Sheffield. "The deer are still stirred up and moving, which means crashes."

Deer season is coming to an end and within a few weeks will close, but that doesn't mean motorists may relax.

"The peak is in November and December, which lasted a little longer than usual, but there are still plenty of deer moving and causing crashes," said Matt Adams, of Adams Body Shop in Rogersville. "During the peak, we were seeing 10 to 12 (vehicles) a week coming in for assessments. Now, we'll get one or two a week."

Holden said he saw six deer Sunday while he was on patrol.

"There's no telling how many deer vs. car wrecks I've worked this year on U.S. 72 and U.S. 43," he said.

Bill Cochran, a Nationwide Insurance agent in Florence, said his office constantly gets calls from clients about deer crashes.

"They are a lot more common than they use to be," Cochran said. "It's not just a seasonal thing; we get calls about crashes year round."

Adams said he has seen vehicles that collided with deer that were totaled.

"When a vehicle is traveling 65 mph going up the highway and a deer comes out of nowhere and they crash, they can do a lot of damage," Adams said.

Holden said years ago, deer crashes in urban areas were rare, but more and more deer are in urban areas today.

"With more and more subdivisions being developed, we're kind of running the deer out of their natural habitat," he said. "They're out looking for food, water, and they're having to go into other areas."

Senior Trooper Johnathan Appling said deer wrecks can occur anywhere on any type of roadway.

"It doesn't matter if it's interstate, federal, state, county roads, or even city streets. Not to mention, they can happen at any time of day. I've seen it all," Appling said.

"I watch for them everywhere I go now," Holden said. "I don't care what time, what day or what month, because it can happen. I know."