Serious accident in Flöcking: 13-year-old after e-scooter crash seriously injured

Serious accident in Flöcking: 13-year-old after e-scooter crash seriously injured

On Friday afternoon, a serious accident occurred in Flöcking, Weiz district, between a car and an e-scooter. At 3:40 p.m., a 13-year-old from the Weiz district was hit frontally by a car that was directed by a 19-year-old. The collision was so violent that the boy was thrown against the windshield and suffered serious injuries. A rescue helicopter, C12, immediately brought him to the LKH Graz Pediatric Surgery, while the driver of the car was luckily unharmed. Significant damage to property occurred on the car, and the e-scooter broke into two parts due to the impact. Such incidents throw a shadow on the increasing popularity of e-scooters in Austria.

More and more people are relying on the sleek electric scooters, but the number of accidents are alarming. According to a study, reports engenieur.de of a significant increase in serious injuries in recent years. Between 2020 and 2023, over 538 seriously injured e-scooter travelers were recorded in the dream of the German Society for Trauma Surgery. In particular, under 18-year-olds, like the 13-year-old from Flöcking, are often affected. It is found that only 3 % of e-scooter drivers wear a helmet, although this could reduce the risk of head injuries by up to 70 %. The situation in Austria could be similarly critical, since the use of e-scooters increases here too.

a worrying development

The statistics are alarming: In 2023, Germany experienced an increase in e-scooter accidents with personal loss by 14 %, with a doubling of deaths to 22 compared to the previous year, such as destatis.de reported. A significant part of the injured is under 25 years old, which means that many younger people are affected by these accidents. More than 80 % of the victims were younger than 45 years, and 66.3 % of the accidents were caused by the e-scooter travelers themselves. The most common causes of accidents are incorrect use of roads and the influence of alcohol. These numbers should serve as a warning, especially when you consider that over half of the accidents in urban areas happen with high traffic density.

In many European countries, measures to improve the security of e-scooter travelers have already been taken. There are regulations such as helmet obligation in Italy and night driving bans in Oslo, which aim to reduce the number of accidents. In Germany, where e-scooters have been approved in road traffic since 2019, there are still no comprehensive measures that go beyond the personal responsibility of the users. It is to be hoped that the tragic events such as the accident in Flöcking will bring about rethinking and more security in road traffic.