Klondike, Iowa — Law enforcement and DNR officials are reminding people that deer are on the move and are causing car accidents, sometimes even with injuries.
This weekend, a deer and a car tangled near Klondike in far western Lyon County, sending an Inwood woman to a hospital. According to the Lyon County Sheriff’s Office, in the 5:00 a.m. hour, 32-year-old Toni Frahm of Inwood was driving a 2016 Dodge Caravan westbound and struck a deer that was in the roadway. The vehicle’s airbags were deployed due to impact and Frahm was transported to Avera Merrill Pioneer Hospital in Rock Rapids with leg pain.
The vehicle sustained about $20,000 dollars in damage. Larchwood EMS, the Larchwood Fire Department, the Lyon County Ambulance Squad, and Trackside towing assisted with the response to the accident.
DNR officials tell us that the combination of cool fall weather and tractors and combines removing crops in fields across Iowa get deer moving. With the peak of the deer breeding activity still more than a month away, drivers need to remain vigilant with their defensive driving skills. They remind us to put down the phone and don’t drive distracted, and say if possible, to avoid driving during dawn and dusk which are when deer are most active. They advise motorists to slow down, look fencerow to fencerow, and for the reflection of their eyes. If a deer jumps onto the roadway, don’t veer or try to avoid it, but use a controlled braking technique.
