Mississippi

Julie Straw

Brandon, MS (WLBT) - Here in Mississippi all terrain vehicles and their riders are hardly regulated.  There are no ATV safety laws in Mississippi, but should there be?  The House Transportation Committee discussed the issue Monday afternoon.  This comes just one day after a Brandon man is killed while racing his ATV.

"I told him.  I said Albert please don't be driving so fast, please," said Albert Wooten's sister Kirby.

No joy riding, please: Joy riders and trespassers this summer have been destroying nests of a federally endangered bird on islands and sandbars of the Ohio and Mississippi rivers. People riding off-road vehicles in protected areas destroyed numerous nests of the interior subspecies of the least tern in recent weeks. Yellow signs posted prominently at each location identify it as a least tern nesting site and warn against trespassing.

The Jones Co. Sheriff’s Office has issued a zero tolerance policy for drivers of ATVs operating the vehicles on county roads. Sheriff Alex Hodge said this week that he has encouraged his deputies to write tickets and take the vehicle away on a second offense.

“I want to encourage our residents to enjoy their time on ATVs, but they need to stay out of the road,” he said. “I’m not taking the fun away, but my job is to save and protect lives. Because of the enforcement, we have seen a significant reduction in ATV activity on our roads.”

According to the Website ATVsafety.gov, approximately 271 ATV deaths were reported between 1982 and 2007, 65 of those between 2005 and 2007. Nationwide, over 150,000 ER-treated injuries were reported in 2007 alone.

Jeremy Pittari

PICAYUNE — Riding a four-wheeler on county roads is illegal and can cause accidents.

One such incident sent one woman to the hospital Sunday when an ATV crossed into her lane as she was riding her motorcycle. That county resident riding his ATV illegally on county roads forced her off the road. Pearl River County Sheriff’s Department Capt. Kelvin Stanford said the accident took place Sunday at about 1:24 p.m. on McNeill Henleyfield Road.

At that time county resident Bryan King, 23, of 266 Joe Smith Rd., Carriere, was riding his 2007 Honda TRX four-wheeler west bound on the county road just as Michelle Redhawk, 55, of 12431 Crestwood Dr., Gulfport was riding her 2009 Yamaha motorcycle east bound.

A recent story in the Hattiesburg American expressed concerns over ATV problems at the Forrest County Multi Purpose Center. Imagine that, teenagers acting irresponsibly on four wheelers.

And guess what? There are young people all over the Pine Belt illegally driving off-road vehicles on county roads, trespassing on private property, damaging public lands, creeks and wetlands.

Forrest County has been lucky.

Underage kids using the grounds of the Forrest County Multi Purpose Center as an unauthorized all-terrain vehicle track have yet to cause any serious harm to themselves or others, officials said.

ATV injuries, deaths often occur because of young driver, lacks of safety gear. 

Adults and children alike will wake up on Dec. 25, with a gift from Santa that doesn't quite fit under the tree - a brand new all-terrain vehicle.

Frances Spinosa, a neurosurgery nurse at the University of Mississippi Medical Center, appreciates the appeal of ATVs, but she's helped treat enough people injured by them to make her wary.

"People have a mindset about ATVs - that it's somehow safe to ride them without helmets," she said.

Cynthia Bullion

The type of ATV accident that recently killed two 11-year-old DeSoto County girls is more common and deadly than most people may realize.

Since 2006, 13 children and four adults across the U.S. have been killed in rollovers involving the same ATV that locals Lauren Dilworth and Emily Bates were riding Saturday when killed a Yamaha Rhino.