Pennsylvania motorists have a one-in-57 chance of being involved in a crash with an animal – that’s according to State Farm Insurance. That puts Pennsylvania sixth in the country for animal related crashes. The animal crashes that usually cost the most to repair and are most dangerous are with deer. There were 57 hundred deer-vehicle collisions in Pennsylvania in 2021, resulting in 1,255 injuries and 13 fatalities. That’s right -- people killed by colliding with a deer. How can these crashes be avoided and what to do if you do hit a deer? With us on The Spark today are Pennsylvania’s Acting Insurance Commissioner Michael Humphreys and Lt. Adam Reed, Director for the Communications Office for the Pennsylvania State Police.

Pennsylvania motorists have a one-in-57 chance of being involved in a crash with an animal – that’s according to State Farm Insurance. That puts Pennsylvania sixth in the country for animal related crashes. The animal crashes that usually cost the most to repair and are most dangerous are with deer. There were 57 hundred deer-vehicle collisions in Pennsylvania in 2021, resulting in 1,255 injuries and 13 fatalities. That’s right -- people killed by colliding with a deer. How can these crashes be avoided and what to do if you do hit a deer? With us on The Spark today are Pennsylvania’s Acting Insurance Commissioner Michael Humphreys and Lt. Adam Reed, Director for the Communications Office for the Pennsylvania State Police.

When people come together and talk about really interesting topics, great questions spark better understanding and opportunities for new ideas to form. On The Spark from WITF, hosts Scott LaMar and Aniya Faulcon start the conversations about what’s happening in the world and at home. Share your ideas at https://witf.org/programs/the-spark.

When people come together and talk about really interesting topics, great questions spark better understanding and opportunities for new ideas to form. On The Spark from <a href="https://www.witf.org">WITF</a>, hosts Scott LaMar and Aniya Faulcon start the conversations about what’s happening in the world and at home. Share your ideas at <a href="https://witf.org/programs/the-spark">https://witf.org/programs/the-spark</a>.

The Spark

When people come together and talk about really interesting topics, great questions spark better understanding and opportunities for new ideas to form. On The Spark from WITF, hosts Scott LaMar and Aniya Faulcon start the conversations about what’s happening in the world and at home. Share your ideas at <a href="https://witf.org/programs/the-spark">https://witf.org/programs/the-spark</a>.

What to know about increasing number of deer-vehicle collisions in Pennsylvania

Patrick Donmoyer, director of the German Cultural Heritage Center speaks with us about the cancellation of the Kutztown Folk Festival. The festival has been around since 1950.

Patrick Donmoyer, director of the German Cultural Heritage Center speaks with us about the cancellation of the Kutztown Folk Festival. The festival has been around since 1950.

Kutztown Folk Festival Cancelled for 2025

The start of rifle deer season began on the Saturday after Thanksgiving. According to Travis Lau, Pa Game Commission Communications Director, most participation takes place on opening weekend.

“So, what we've seen is like in the firearms deer season, which is still the big one that we're that, you know, it sort of generates a lot more media requests than anything else. We have longer deer seasons, longer stretch deer seasons than we ever have in Pennsylvania, higher participation by hunters in earlier starting seasons. But we'll still see about 550,000 deer hunters out during the firearms deer season.”

Deer hunting is very important in Pennsylvania as it helps to control the deer population.

“You know, the deer are our state animal here in Pennsylvania. They influence a lot of the impact Pennsylvanians in a lot of positive ways. But at the same time, there are negatives there. So, it is a balancing act. You know, the annual deer harvest is an important means of managing that population to the objective. And the hunters really should be complimented for the work they do there. You know on the wit with hunters not only do hunters provide a public service in deer management and pay to do it, but then at the same time, through the purchase of their hunting licenses, they fund the conservation of all other wildlife species.”

The start of rifle deer season began on the Saturday after Thanksgiving. According to Travis Lau, Pa Game Commission Communications Director, most participation takes place on opening weekend.
“So, what we've seen is like in the firearms deer season, which is still the big one that we're that, you know, it sort of generates a lot more media requests than anything else. We have longer deer seasons, longer stretch deer seasons than we ever have in Pennsylvania, higher participation by hunters in earlier starting seasons. But we'll still see about 550,000 deer hunters out during the firearms deer season.”
Deer hunting is very important in Pennsylvania as it helps to control the deer population.
“You know, the deer are our state animal here in Pennsylvania. They influence a lot of the impact Pennsylvanians in a lot of positive ways. But at the same time, there are negatives there. So, it is a balancing act. You know, the annual deer harvest is an important means of managing that population to the objective. And the hunters really should be complimented for the work they do there. You know on the wit with hunters not only do hunters provide a public service in deer management and pay to do it, but then at the same time, through the purchase of their hunting licenses, they fund the conservation of all other wildlife species.”

Rifle Deer Season kicks off in Pennsylvania for 2024-25 year

Coming up on The Spark Weekly;

The Pennsylvania German Cultural Heritage Center is an open-air folklife museum and research center dedicated to preserving and celebrating Pennsylvania German folk culture, history, and language in a unique educational setting at Kutztown University.

Also, on the Program

Ambassadors for Hope is the only organization in Lancaster County with the sole function of supporting children as soon as the parent of a child is incarcerated.

Coming up on The Spark Weekly;
<a href="https://www.kutztown.edu/about-ku/administrative-offices/pennsylvania-german-cultural-heritage-center.html">The Pennsylvania German Cultural Heritage Center</a> is an open-air folklife museum and research center dedicated to preserving and celebrating Pennsylvania German folk culture, history, and language in a unique educational setting at Kutztown University.
Also, on the Program
<a href="http://ambassadorsforhope.com/">Ambassadors for Hope</a> is the only organization in Lancaster County with the sole function of supporting children as soon as the parent of a child is incarcerated.

What to know about increasing number of deer-vehicle collisions in Pennsylvania

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