Today the Times crunches the numbers on New Yorkers whose deaths are ruled accidental, noting that although there has been a significant drop in homicides and fire fatalities in recent years, there has not been a similar drop in death by oops. According to a recently released report [pdf], in 2008, 54,193 people died in NYC, and 1,044 deaths (excluding drug overdoses) were classified as accidental. It was an 8.8 percent decline from 1998, but homicides fell 17.5 percent in that same period. Why can't the government save us from accidents?
Well, they're working on it! Officials are using the data to try and focus on areas where they might educate New Yorkers to save them from themselves. According to the mayor's office, motor vehicle accident fatalities fell to an all-time low last year, but the number of pedestrians killed rose slightly last year from 2008. Over 225 miles of bicycle lanes have been added since 2006, and officials say that's contributed to a slight decrease in bike fatalities, despite a boom in bicycling.
Whereas biking mostly kills those under 35, the elderly have to worry about falling down and not getting up. But fear not, seniors—the Health Department has Laura DiGrande, who has the job title director of unintentional injury initiatives, is studying how to prevent these nasty spills. "We’re looking at the medical examiner files to better understand them — in the home, in the street," DiGrande tells the Times. "Were they living alone? Did they slip in the bathtub? On a rug? Are there co-morbid medical conditions that influenced it? Multiple use of drugs?" Making DiGrande's mission even more challenging is the fact that life expectancy in the city has gone up by 15 months in the last eight years...giving old people a lot more time to tumble.
