Fatal Crashes Only
This report covers fatal crashes only, from the NHTSA Fatality Analysis Reporting System — the federal census of every crash on a US public road that killed someone within 30 days. It does not include injury or property-damage-only crashes, and its totals are not comparable with the all-severity crash reports published elsewhere on this site.
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YEAR-OVER-YEAR CRASH REPORT · LOUISIANA · SEPTEMBER 2023
Purpose: Machine-readable JSON endpoint for AI agents, LLMs, researchers, and programmatic consumers. Returns all underlying crash data and AI-generated commentary without HTML.
Authentication: None required. Public endpoint.
GET: https://thatcarhitme.com/api/crash-data/reports/data/louisiana/fatal/statewide/september-2023-report
Monthly Traffic Safety Analysis
80 CRASHES IN
LOUISIANA
SEPTEMBER 2023
In September 2023, Louisiana recorded 80 fatal crashes, an increase of 19.4% compared to the 67 fatal crashes in September 2022. Total fatalities rose by 23.6%, from 72 to 89. A significant shift was observed in DUI-related fatal crashes, which more than doubled from 16 to 37 incidents.
80
▲ 19.4%was 67
Total Crash Events
89
▲ 23.6%was 72
Persons Killed
44
▲ 4.8%was 42
Persons Injured
8
Hit-and-Run Crashes
Note: "Persons Killed" (89) counts individual fatalities across all crash events. "Fatal" in the severity table below (80) counts crash events where at least one fatality occurred. A single crash can result in multiple fatalities.
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Aggregate counts from crash, person, and vehicle records
Trend Summary
The overall trend indicates an increase in fatal crash incidents and associated fatalities year-over-year. Fatal crashes increased by 13, from 67 in September 2022 to 80 in September 2023, representing a 19.4% rise. Total fatalities increased by 17, from 72 to 89, a 23.6% increase over the prior period.
8
Hit-and-Run Crashes — September 2023
▼ 0.0% vs prior (8)
The number of hit-and-run fatal crashes remained stable at 8 incidents in both September 2022 and September 2023. However, the hit-and-run rate decreased from 11.9% in the prior period to 10% in the current period.
Vulnerable Road User Casualties
14
Pedestrians Killed
1
Cyclists Killed
74
Motorists Killed
0
Pedestrians Injured
0
Cyclists Injured
44
Motorists Injured
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Mode classified from person records (driver/passenger → motorist; pedestrian; bicyclist → cyclist; in-line skater / unspecified → other)
When Crashes Happen
In September 2023, the peak day for fatal crashes shifted to Saturday with 16 incidents, up from Friday with 14 incidents in September 2022. The peak hour for fatal crashes also shifted from 3p with 6 incidents in the prior period to 9p with 7 incidents in the current period.
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Crash date field aggregated by weekday
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Crash time field aggregated by hour (0-23)
Road & Environmental Conditions
Fatal crashes occurring in clear weather conditions increased from 61 to 72 year-over-year, while those in rainy conditions rose from 1 to 4. Fatal crashes occurring in dark, unlighted conditions also increased from 18 to 24 incidents. There was no data for road surface conditions in either period.
Weather
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Weather condition at time of crash
Lighting
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Lighting condition field
Vehicles & Demographics
The total number of vehicles involved in fatal crashes increased from 105 in September 2022 to 122 in September 2023. Nissan/Datsun vehicles involved in fatal crashes increased from 9 to 15, becoming the top make in the current period, while Ford vehicles involved decreased slightly from 16 to 14.
Top Vehicle Makes (122 vehicles)
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Vehicle unit records
4 persons with unknown or unrecorded age excluded from age chart.
Sex Distribution (184 persons with recorded sex)
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Person-level records linked to crash events
Speed Limit Zones
Fatal crashes occurring in 55 mph speed zones significantly increased from 13 in September 2022 to 29 in September 2023. Additionally, fatal crashes at 70 mph increased from 5 to 11. Conversely, fatal crashes in 45 mph zones decreased from 10 to 8 incidents.
Fatal crashes by zone: 20 mph: 1 of 1 (100%) · 25 mph: 1 of 1 (100%) · 35 mph: 12 of 12 (100%) · 40 mph: 4 of 4 (100%) · 45 mph: 8 of 8 (100%) · 50 mph: 4 of 4 (100%) · 55 mph: 29 of 29 (100%) · 60 mph: 3 of 3 (100%) · 65 mph: 3 of 3 (100%) · 70 mph: 11 of 11 (100%)
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Posted speed limit at crash location
Manner of Collision
The dominant manner of collision remained 'The First Harmful Event was Not a Collision with a Motor Vehicle in Transport,' increasing from 43 fatal crashes in September 2022 to 48 in September 2023. Angle collisions remained stable at 13 fatal crashes in both periods. Front-to-front fatal crashes increased from 7 to 10.
Manner of Collision
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Crash-level records
Vehicle Type
4-door sedans and light pickups remained the most common vehicle body types in fatal crashes, with 4-door sedans increasing from 23 to 31 and light pickups from 21 to 25. Two-wheel motorcycles involved in fatal crashes increased from 7 to 10. Compact utility vehicles saw a decrease from 16 to 10.
Vehicle Type
Showing top 9 of 20 reported. 11 additional (21 total) not shown: Single-unit straight truck or Cab-Chassis (GVWR range 10,001 to 19,500 lbs.), Medium/heavy Pickup (GVWR greater than 10,000 lbs.), 5-door/4-door hatchback, Single-unit straight truck or Cab-Chassis (GVWR greater than 26,000 lbs.), Minivan (Chrysler Town and Country, Caravan, Grand Caravan, Voyager, Voyager, Honda-Odyssey, ...), ATV/ATC [All-Terrain Cycle], Medium/Heavy Vehicle Based Motor Home, 3-door/2-door hatchback, Farm equipment other than trucks, 2-door sedan,hardtop,coupe, Motor Scooter.
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Vehicle unit records
Rural vs Urban
Urban fatal crashes slightly decreased from 44 in September 2022 to 42 in September 2023. Conversely, rural fatal crashes saw a significant increase from 23 to 37 incidents. This indicates a higher proportion of fatal crashes occurring in rural areas in the current period.
Rural vs Urban
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Crash-level records
Roadway Functional Class
Fatal crashes on Major Collector roads saw a notable increase from 7 in September 2022 to 18 in September 2023. Fatal crashes on Interstates also increased from 12 to 14. Principal Arterial fatal crashes decreased from 24 to 20.
Roadway Functional Class
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Crash-level records
Roadway Ownership
Roadways owned by the State Highway Agency continued to account for the majority of fatal crashes, increasing from 52 incidents in September 2022 to 66 in September 2023. Fatal crashes on City or Municipal Highway Agency roads decreased from 10 to 7.
Roadway Ownership
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Crash-level records
Person Type
The number of drivers involved in fatal crashes increased from 102 to 121, and passengers increased from 37 to 52. Pedestrian fatalities decreased from 17 to 14, and bicyclist fatalities decreased from 4 to 1.
Person Type
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Crash-level records
Person Injury Severity
The number of fatal injuries (K) increased from 72 in September 2022 to 89 in September 2023. Serious injuries (A) also increased from 12 to 15. The number of persons with no injury (O) increased from 50 to 55.
Person Injury Severity
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Crash-level records
Occupant Safety Equipment
The number of persons using shoulder and lap belts in fatal crashes increased from 61 in September 2022 to 81 in September 2023. Concurrently, the number of persons reported with no safety equipment used also increased significantly from 41 to 64.
Occupant Safety Equipment
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Person-level records linked to crash events
Point of Impact
The '12 Clock Point' (front) remained the most common point of impact, increasing from 62 incidents in September 2022 to 70 in September 2023. The '11 Clock Point' also increased from 10 to 11 incidents. '1 Clock Point' fatal crashes decreased from 7 to 4.
Point of Impact
"Other" combines 8 smaller categories (15 records): 10 Clock Point (4), 8 Clock Point (2), 9 Clock Point (2), 3 Clock Point (2), 7 Clock Point (2), Left-Front Side (1), 2 Clock Point (1), 5 Clock Point (1).
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Vehicle unit records
Vehicles Per Crash
Single-vehicle fatal crashes increased from 38 in September 2022 to 43 in September 2023. Two-vehicle fatal crashes saw a notable increase from 21 to 33. The number of fatal crashes involving three vehicles decreased from 7 to 3.
Vehicles Per Crash
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Crash-level records
Data Sources & Methodology
Primary Data Source
All crash data in this report is sourced from NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes), accessed programmatically via the NHTSA FARS Open Data API (SODA). This dataset contains official police-reported motor vehicle traffic crash records maintained by the reporting jurisdiction's law enforcement agency. Records are published to the open data portal by the municipality and are subject to the portal's terms of use.
Data Retrieval
- Access method: NHTSA FARS Open Data API (SoQL queries)
- Data format: Structured JSON via REST API
- Record types queried: Crash events, person records, and vehicle unit records
- Date filter applied: 2023-09-01 through 2023-09-30
- Report generated: August 4, 2026
Data Coverage
- Reporting period: 2023-09-01 through 2023-09-30 (30 days)
- Geographic scope: Louisiana
- Total crash records analyzed: 80
- Total persons involved: 188
- Total vehicles involved: 122
Analytical Methodology
- Severity classification: Uses the KABCO injury scale (K=Fatal, A=Incapacitating injury, B=Non-incapacitating injury, C=Possible injury, O=No injury/property damage only), the standard classification in U.S. Model Minimum Uniform Crash Criteria (MMUCC). Severity is assigned per crash event based on the most severe injury in that crash. A single fatal crash (K) may involve multiple fatalities; therefore the "Persons Killed" count in the headline KPIs may differ from the "Fatal" crash count in the severity breakdown.
- Contributing factors: Reflect the officer-determined primary contributory cause recorded at the time of the crash report. These are preliminary determinations and may not reflect final investigation findings.
- Hit-and-run classification: Based on the hit-and-run indicator field in the official crash report, as determined by the responding officer at the scene.
- Temporal analysis: Day-of-week and hour-of-day distributions are computed from the crash date/time timestamp in each record.
- Demographics: Age and sex distributions are drawn from person-level records linked to each crash event. A single crash may involve multiple persons.
- Vehicle data: Make information is drawn from vehicle unit records linked to each crash event.
- AI commentary: Narrative sections are generated by Google Gemini (large language model) based on the structured data. Commentary is descriptive, not predictive, and should not be interpreted as expert opinion.
Limitations & Disclaimers
- Only crashes reported to and documented by law enforcement are included. Minor incidents, unreported crashes, and near-misses are not captured in this dataset.
- Data reflects conditions at the time of the initial police report and may be subject to subsequent corrections, reclassifications, or supplements by the reporting agency.
- Open data portal records may experience a publication lag - recently occurring crashes may not yet appear in the dataset at the time of report generation.
- AI-generated commentary is produced by a large language model and is intended to highlight patterns in the data. It does not constitute legal, medical, or professional analysis.
- Percentages are calculated from reported data and are subject to rounding.
Non-Affiliation Disclosure
This report is produced independently by ThatCarHitMe.com (Injuria.ai). It is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or produced in partnership with any law enforcement agency, municipal government, state department of transportation, or the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Data is sourced from publicly available government open data portals.
Data License
The underlying crash data is provided under the municipality's Open Data Terms of Use and is made available to the public for unrestricted use. This analysis and report is © 2026 Injuria.ai and may be cited with attribution using the suggested citation below.
Corrections & Feedback
If you believe any data in this report is inaccurate or have questions about our methodology, please contact: data@injuria.ai. We are committed to accuracy and will issue corrections promptly.
Suggested Citation
ThatCarHitMe.com (Injuria.ai). "Louisiana Crash Intelligence Report: September 2023." Published August 4, 2026. Reporting period: 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30. Data source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes), NHTSA FARS Open Data. Available at: https://thatcarhitme.com/crash-data/louisiana/fatal/statewide/september-2023-report
About the Publisher
ThatCarHitMe.com is a crash data intelligence platform developed by Injuria.ai, a legal technology company specializing in traffic safety analytics. We aggregate and analyze publicly available government crash data to produce structured intelligence reports for communities, researchers, journalists, and legal professionals. Our reports combine programmatic data retrieval from official open data portals with AI-assisted narrative analysis.
Questions about this report's data or methodology: data@injuria.ai
ThatCarHitMe.com · An Injuria.ai Company
ThatCarHitMe.com
An Injuria.ai Company
Crash Data Intelligence
Data: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · NHTSA FARS
Period: 2023-09-01 – 2023-09-30
Generated: August 4, 2026 · All rights reserved