HOUSTON – Regardless of where you live or how much rain you get, it’s always important to stay safe, especially while on the roads.
LIVE RADAR: Heavy rain on Monday just the beginning of messy weather week in Houston
And the KPRC 2 weather team is keeping you ready as we continue to track thunderstorms, as Monday’s storms left over from Easter Weekend are expected to close out the last full week of April.
KPRC 2 FLOOD TRACKER: Get alerted if flooding is occurring in your immediate area
According to a study by the American Meteorological Society, which analyzed the data of 125,012 deadly crashes over 6 years, found that 34% of those accidents happened during “active rain,” and the highest rate of those deadly accidents happened during the morning rush hour.
MORE: Essential tools, safety tips for Houstonians driving in the rain
So your weather team asked Joe Khatib from River Oaks Paint & Body to look for dangerous trends on the roadways, especially when we have stormy weather.
What are the common reasons folks get into an accident - especially during a storm?
They’re not paying attention to what’s happening on the roads and they end up hitting their brakes too hard and hydroplane. People need to drive very carefully. Drive slow. Keep your eyes open and your hands on the steering wheel. Because if you don’t do this one more time, well, you’re going to wind up here.
You’ve been in the autobody industry for decades - what are some lessons you’ve learned?
I’ve learned to always keep at least two car lengths between me and the car in front of me. And I know a lot of times, you want to give a little extra space between you and the other car in front of you because the drivers here can be are very aggressive. You have to back off and leave a little more space. Being aggressive back doesn’t work.
When it’s raining, it can be really hard to see a pothole and rain can contribute to the creation of potholes - so what problems have you seen in Houston with potholes and cars?
If you hit a pothole hard enough, you’re going to destroy your suspension. And then your car will have to go to the mechanic shop to fix and replace missing parts. Which is another reminder to not drive in the rain, if you don’t have to and to take it slow while on the roadways -especially when it’s raining.
