National survey says Mississippians some of worst drivers in rain

GOLDEN TRIANGLE, Miss. (WCBI)- 2019 is off to a dreary start, and the rain will likely continue for the next few days.

This has law enforcement on high alert because accidents tend to increase as people hit the wet roads.

A national survey took a look at how drivers handle wet weather and let’s just say the Magnolia State has room for improvement.

Second from the worst.

That’s where a SafeWise survey placed Mississippi, right behind Arkansas.

The reason?

The number of wrecks related to rainy days.

“When it rains we try and just sit back and wait on a call because we do experience a lot more volume of wrecks during the rainy time,” said Sgt. Derrick Beckom.

And there’s another driver habit that doesn’t go well with those slick surfaces.

“We would say speeding, and again it goes back to just slowing down taking your time making sure again that you have some type of precautionary actions. Just because the speed limit is 70 doesn’t mean you have to do 70 especially when it’s raining,” said Sgt. Beckom.

Mississippians aren’t strangers to wet weather according to the same survey; the state is in the Top 10 when it comes to annual rainfall.

“Initially, when it first starts to rain it brings the oil from the roadway and a lot of times we initially see wrecks when it first starts to rain because of that, but again sometimes the motorists just speed and people just being in a hurry and not take it as extra precautionary actions to avoid the accident and paying attention to the weather,” said Sgt. Beckom.

When the rain keeps falling, standing water also becomes a hazard.

“Being mindful of the area that you’re driving in being aware you have some areas tend to hold water more so-so just being aware of that because of the hydroplane situation once it starts there’s nothing you can do but hope for the best,” said Sgt. Beckom.

Sergeant Derrick Beckom says there are some things you can do to stay safe when its raining. Make sure your tire treads are good, turn on your lights, replace old wiper blades and as mentioned before slow down while driving.