South Jersey Health Professionals Encourage Motorcyclists to Wear Helmets

Motorcycle safety advocates and health professionals worry that motorcyclists who fail to wear helmets while riding on NJ roadways are exposing themselves to significant physical injuries. Beyond that, say some auto safety experts and emergency room doctors in South Jersey, these motorcyclists are putting their lives at risk every time they hop on a bike and neglect to protect their head from traumatic injury.
In the past few months, health professional in Atlantic City and other South Jersey municipalities have noticed an uptick in emergency room visits by people who were hurt as a result of a motorcycle accident.
One of the reasons for the noticeable rise in the number of serious motorcycle accidents on Atlantic City roads is that Jersey Shore towns like AC tend to become extremely congested with traffic during the summer as more and more people travel to these locations for summer vacations.
Many motorcyclists don’t bother to wear helmets because they have never been involved in a serious motorcycle accident and simply don’t see the need to inconvenience themselves while traveling on the road. However, the reality is that it takes just one motorcycle crash to cause catastrophic injuries that could leave a bike rider seriously injured or even dead.
Motorcycle Accidents Cause Serious Injuries
Every year, approximately 500,000 people in the US have to go to emergency rooms due to bike-related injuries, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). In New Jersey, many of these injuries prove fatal: in 2015, 17 motorcycle riders were killed in accidents on NJ roadways, according the NJ State Police Fatal Accident Investigation Unit.
Since motorcyclists are not protected by the body of a car in the event of a serious accident or collision, they are not protected in the same way that motorists and car passengers are protected. As a result, a motorcyclist involved in an auto accident is far more likely to sustain a traumatic brain injury or a spinal cord injury. Dr. James Eakins, who serves as medical director of the trauma center at AtlantiCare Regional Medical Center in Atlantic City, said that the worst motorcycle accidents can result in broken bones, broken ribs, internal bleeding, ruptured spleens, and head injuries that lead to “permanent neurologic damage for the rest of your life.”
For additional information, read the PressOfAtlanticCity.com article, “Bike Safety, Wearing a Helmet Could Be the Difference between Major, Minor Injuries.”
 
If you or a loved one has suffered an injury in a car accident or a motorcycle accident, you should speak with a qualified personal injury attorney immediately. The experienced, knowledgeable personal injury and car accident lawyers at Lombardi & Lombardi can help you get the compensation you deserve. Contact us now to schedule a free consultation at one of our offices in Edison, Brick or Freehold, NJ