Weekend accidents reminder of variety of traffic hazards

School is out, summer is here, and outdoor activities are in full swing.

The price of gasoline is creeping up again, but is still low enough, compared to last year, that traveling by car is an attractive option for taking a vacation.

But last weekend's sobering news from the Nebraska State Patrol was a reminder that travel can be dangerous.

Thankfully, Nebraska's traffic fatality count is below average -- 77 by June 1 compared to an average of 97 over the years 2005-08.

An 80-year-old in Beatrice was killed when he drove into the path of a semi trailer truck. A 23-year-old woman, not wearing a seatbelt, was killed when her minivan went out of control and rolled.

Three members of a Nebraska family, when their car, driven by the 15-year-old son, crossed the center line and struck an oncoming pickup truck. The father, 43 and mother, 39, were also killed, but two other children, 10 years old and 19 months, survived. All six people involved in the crash, including the 17-year-old driver of the pickup truck, were buckled up.

An Omaha man was killed when the mini bike he was driving pulled out in front of an SUV.

The wide variety of drivers -- from teenage to elderly -- and conditions, with seatbelts in use and without, car, truck, mini van, even a two-wheeler, show that accidents can happen anywhere, anytime, and involve anyone.

Like the desk sergeant on the old "Hill Street Blues" television show admonished at the beginning of each shift: "Hey, let's be careful out there."