Paul Sakuma/AP
Returning troops get into more traffic accidents, group says
Car wrecks more likely in the six months after deployment.
For some troops returning from deployment, transitioning back to civilian life involves road rage, and trying to shake the idea that the Toyota Corolla in the next lane is trying to blow you to bits. The United Services Automobile Association has found that troops back from deployment had "13 percent more at-fault accidents" or, more simply, were more likely to get into accidents in the six months after their return than in the six months before they were deployed. Karen Jowers of the Military Times reports:
Soldiers experienced the highest increase of at-fault accidents, at 23%, compared with the drivers' experiences before the deployment. Marines experienced a 12.5% increase in at-fault accidents; sailors, 3%, and airmen, 2%.
Those who had deployed three or more times saw a 36% increase in at-fault accidents. Troops younger than 22 had the biggest increase in accidents, with a 25% increase, compared to a 7.5% increase in those older than 29.