Learning from Tragedy

​Pick an ordinary, even boring, day in 2018. You got up, maybe had some coffee, went to work, spent time with family or friends, had dinner, went to bed. And while you and the rest of us were going about our routine business on that random 2018 day, on average, there were 217 traffic crashes on Minnesota roads, 76 people were injured, and one person died. This is just a small part of the data from the newly released “Minnesota Motor Vehicle Crash Facts 2018.”

Learn more about this important report in the latest DPS blog.

Hands-Free is the Law. Stay Safe. Stay Alive.

While Minnesota is now a hands-free cell phone state, some drivers continue to put themselves and others at risk by handling the phone or using non-navigation apps, reading texts or scrolling or typing on the phone.

During the first month of the new law (Aug. 1-31), the State Patrol stopped 2,115 drivers for failing to comply with the law.

If you’ve already gone hands-free or put your phone away while driving, thank you. If not, we’ve got tips for going hands-free and answers to all of your questions at HandsFreeMN.org.

How Extra Seconds Can Buy You a Lifetime

Havana may seem like a typical kid, but her mom, Erica, describes her as “a miracle.” That’s because, in November 2015, doctors told Erica that Havana may never walk again. Her spine was broken when Erica’s vehicle – in which Havana and her two brothers were riding – was hit head-on by a drunk driver.

The fact that, despite the odds, Havana now walks on her own is indeed a miracle, but she wouldn’t even be alive if not for Erica’s actions before she started the car that day.

Our recent blog tells Havana and Erica’s amazing story, and the moral is “buckle up.”