OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) – Oklahoma Wildlife experts said we can expect to see more deer-related crashes while the season changes.
A deer darts past a windshield on a dark night. The driver’s heart rate and adrenaline spikes. It’s a situation Micah Holmes said we can expect to see more of as the summer turns to fall.
“They’re chasing each other, the male deer are chasing the female deer. And they’ve got other things on their mind than avoiding vehicles, unfortunately,” said Micah Holmes.
Holmes said the days are getting shorter, moving Oklahoman’s commute to and from work to dusk and dawn. That’s when deer are the most active.
“If you see one deer, be alert for another deer,” said Holmes.
Since July, The Oklahoma Highway Patrol said there have been several serious deer-related crashes. Two motorcyclists, in Grant and LeFlore Counties were killed when they struck a deer. An ATV driver in Canadian County also lost his life when his vehicle crashed into the animal.
Also in July, a video of a deer crashing through a bus windshield in Lawton went viral.
“They say that your training kind of kicks in and I know that’s what it was,” said Alisha Sutton, the bus driver. “Once I saw that tape afterwards, that’s when I realized, ‘Wow! That just really happened!”
In early August, Oklahoma Highway Patrol said a Merritt School bus driver slammed into a deer on Highway 6 while a student was on board. They were both okay, but the hood of the bus was ripped off.
Viewer Brittany Harmon, who declined to go on camera, said she hit a deer on Highway 86 in Perry last month. Harmon said neither she nor her daughter saw the deer until it was mid-air and about to hit her windshield. It dealt more than $12,000 worth of damage.
Holmes said sometimes that’s the safest thing to do.
“Hitting a deer in some situations is is actually a best case scenario because hitting a tree in the ditch or going to oncoming traffic, that certainly makes a bad situation worse,” said Holmes.
AAA suggests if you’re on the road, while there are no cars around, flip on the high beams. If you’re going around a curve, slow down. If you have time to brake, lay on your horn to scare the deer off.
Holmes said deer hunters also help control the deer population, which means they also help cut down on deer-related crashes. Deer Archery Season starts Saturday, October 1st.