A 20-year-old Specialist assigned to Fort Bliss, Texas died in a PMV-4 mishap that occurred 17 July 2022 on the installation at 2100 local. As the driver turned into the battalion parking lot, the Soldier riding in the rear passenger seat attempted to sit on the door frame of the open window. As a result, the Soldier fell out of the window and struck his head on the pavement. Alcohol was involved but the driver was given a field sobriety test by law enforcement personnel and passed. The mishap Soldier was transported to the local university medical center for further treatment. The Soldier was placed in a medically induced coma, however, succumbed to his injuries four days later.

Since 2017, the Army has lost an average of 36 Soldiers a year to PMV-4 mishaps. This mishap was the 19th PMV-4 fatality of FY22 and below the number of fatalities for the same time period last year.


Safety Tips For Pickup Truck Drivers | Driving Safe

Pickup trucks are versatile vehicles. They can easily be used for day-to-day errands and running around town, but they are also great for work because of the amount of equipment they can accommodate in the back. These powerful, heavy-duty vehicles help us haul, tow and get us where we need to be. But like any other tool of the trade, there are some important safety tips that should be observed.

PASSENGERS GO IN THE CAB BELTED UP – NOT THE BACK OR HANGING OUT THE WINDOW!

We’ve all seen images of pickup trucks travelling down a country road with people – often kids – blissfully riding along in the back. Some of us may even be guilty of doing this ourselves! But it’s time to put an end to this dangerous and illegal behavior.

Seat belts and airbags have been placed in modern vehicles for a reason – to protect the driver and passengers in case of an accident. The back of a pickup truck offers no such protection. Even a minor collision or large pothole, can toss a person out of the back of truck, causing injury or putting them into the path of another vehicle.

Key insights + statistics:
•Wearing your seat belt as a front-seat passenger can limit your chances of moderate to fatal injury by 50% and of dying by 45%. (NHTSA)
•Wearing your seat belt in a light truck limits your risk of critical injury by 60%. (AAA)
•Nationally, most (90.1%) of Americans use seat belts. (CDC)
•On average, 47% of people who die in car accidents weren’t wearing their seat belts. (IIHS)
•15,000 lives are saved every year by wearing a seat belt. (NHTSA)


How many people die from not wearing seat belts?

Unfortunately, the most recent accident fatality data is from 2017. In that year alone, of the 37,133 who died in car accidents, 17,452 people were not wearing a seat belt. With a mortality rate of 47% for those who choose not to, wearing a seat belt is absolutely critical to driver and passenger safety.

Horse play has no place when operating or riding in any vehicle this mishap proves you don’t have to be going fast to end up a fatality when alcohol is involved.