BY TANYA ALBERT
The Cincinnati Enquirer
It must be autumn: Amorous deer are on the move again, darting into busy roadways and colliding with motor vehicles.
Beth Brooke, of Hamilton, ended up with a deer sprawled across her lap and the front passenger seat of her 1991 Toyota Corolla on Wednesday, while traveling east on Interstate 74 near Montana Avenue.
The deer had leapt from the woods and into the fast lane, hitting the car's hood and shattering the windshield, police said.
"The deer was inside the car," Cincinnati Police Officer Steven Shaw said.
Ms. Brooke, 46, suffered head and face injuries. She was released after treatment at Franciscan Hospital -- Western Hills Campus. She is one of an estimated half-million people nationwide who will collide with deer on U.S. roadways this year. The accidents cause about $1 billion in damages, according to the Ohio Insurance Institute.
Most of the accidents will happen in October, November and December. It's breeding, or rutting, time for white-tailed deer, and they're on the move in herds. Peak activity is usually in early- to mid-November.
"If you're not careful, you're going to wear it on your car," said Mark Weaver, deer research biologist for the Indiana Division of Fish and Wildlife.
Deer-vehicle collisions decreased in Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana between 1996 and 1997. But Greater Cincinnati still has some of the most dangerous spots in the Tristate.
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DRIVERS, BEWARE
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The Ohio Insurance Institute offers these safety tips:
Drive at or below the speed limit in areas with deer-crossing signs and use extreme caution.
If a deer crosses the road, look for a second or third to follow. If it looks as if your vehicle is going to hit a deer, hit it. Swerving can be worse.
Deer fixate on headlights. Flashing them might prevent a collision.
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Although deer populations that were on the rise for years are starting to come under control, "there's still a lot of deer out there," said Dave Swanson, forest wildlife biologist for the Ohio Division of Wildlife.
That's especially true in Hamilton County.
Of Ohio's 88 counties, Hamilton County had the second highest number of deer-vehicle collisions in 1997 with 647 reported crashes. Only Summit County had more, with 667 collisions, according to the Ohio Division of Wildlife.
Only 22 percent of Indiana's counties saw an increase in deer-vehicle collisions last year.
Dearborn County was among them.
There were 186 deer-vehicle collisions there in 1997, about 328 accidents per billion miles traveled, according to the Indiana Division of Fish and Wildlife. That's up from 126 collisions in 1996, which meant 242 accidents per billion miles traveled.
"There's a substantial increase because of the growth in the county," Mr. Weaver said. "Deer populations get large when hunter access is cut."
Drivers should be on the lookout for deer particularly at dawn and dusk, wildlife experts say.
About 20 percent of accidents occur in the early-morning hours and 58 percent are between 5 p.m. and midnight, the Ohio Insurance Institute says.
