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 · OREGON · 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/oregon/fatal/statewide/september-2023-report
Monthly Traffic Safety Analysis
51 CRASHES IN
OREGON
SEPTEMBER 2023
In September 2023, Oregon recorded 51 fatal crashes, a decrease from the 59 fatal crashes reported in September 2022, representing a 13.56% reduction. Total fatalities also decreased by 14.75%, from 61 to 52. The most notable shift was the 75% decrease in hit-and-run fatal crashes, falling from 4 in the prior period to 1 in the current period.
51
▼ -13.6%was 59
Total Crash Events
52
▼ -14.8%was 61
Persons Killed
35
▼ -18.6%was 43
Persons Injured
1
▼ -75.0%was 4
Hit-and-Run Crashes
Note: "Persons Killed" (52) counts individual fatalities across all crash events. "Fatal" in the severity table below (51) 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
Fatal crashes in Oregon are trending downward year-over-year, with a 13.56% decrease from 59 fatal crashes in September 2022 to 51 fatal crashes in September 2023. This reduction is also reflected in total fatalities, which fell from 61 to 52, a 14.75% decline.
1
Hit-and-Run Crashes — September 2023
▼ -75.0% vs prior (4)
Hit-and-run fatal crashes significantly decreased year-over-year, falling from 4 incidents in September 2022 to 1 incident in September 2023. This resulted in a reduction of the hit-and-run rate from 6.8% to 2% of all fatal crashes.
Vulnerable Road User Casualties
9
Pedestrians Killed
2
Cyclists Killed
41
Motorists Killed
0
Pedestrians Injured
0
Cyclists Injured
35
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
The temporal patterns for fatal crashes shifted between the two periods. In September 2023, the peak day for fatal crashes was Saturday with 14 incidents, while in September 2022, Friday was the peak day with 15 incidents. The peak hour also shifted from 8 PM with 6 fatal crashes in the prior period to 5 PM with 8 fatal crashes 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 in September 2023 predominantly occurred under clear weather conditions (41 incidents), similar to the prior period (43 incidents). There was a decrease in cloudy weather fatal crashes, from 10 in September 2022 to 5 in September 2023. Daylight conditions accounted for 26 fatal crashes in the current period, a decrease from 31 in the prior period, while fatal crashes in dark, unlighted conditions increased slightly from 11 to 14.
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 age distribution of persons involved in fatal crashes shifted, with the 35-44 age group having the highest count (23) in September 2023, compared to the 26-34 age group (25) in September 2022. Ford remained the top vehicle make involved in fatal crashes, though its count decreased from 13 in the prior period to 9 in the current period. Toyota also saw a decrease from 11 to 6, while Honda's involvement increased from 7 to 7.
Top Vehicle Makes (72 vehicles)
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Vehicle unit records
1 persons with unknown or unrecorded age excluded from age chart.
Sex Distribution (107 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 in speed zones of 55 mph and higher decreased from 35 incidents in September 2022 to 23 incidents in September 2023. Conversely, fatal crashes in speed zones under 55 mph slightly increased from 19 to 20 incidents. All reported speed zones continued to have a 100% fatal rate in both periods.
Fatal crashes by zone: 25 mph: 3 of 3 (100%) · 30 mph: 2 of 2 (100%) · 35 mph: 6 of 6 (100%) · 40 mph: 3 of 3 (100%) · 45 mph: 4 of 4 (100%) · 50 mph: 2 of 2 (100%) · 55 mph: 14 of 14 (100%) · 65 mph: 7 of 7 (100%) · 70 mph: 2 of 2 (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 in both periods was 'The First Harmful Event was Not a Collision with a Motor Vehicle in Transport', accounting for 33 fatal crashes (64.7%) in September 2023, a decrease from 37 (62.7%) in September 2022. Angle collisions decreased from 11 in the prior period to 5 in the current period, while Front-to-Front collisions remained stable at 7 in both periods.
Manner of Collision
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Crash-level records
Vehicle Type
In September 2023, '4-door sedan, hardtop' and 'Compact Utility' were the dominant vehicle body types, each involved in 14 fatal crashes, compared to 'Compact Utility' (18) and '4-door sedan, hardtop' (14) in September 2022. The number of fatal crashes involving 'Two Wheel Motorcycle' remained stable at 12 in both periods, and 'Truck-tractor' involvement also remained consistent with 4 fatal crashes in both periods.
Vehicle Type
Showing top 9 of 16 reported. 7 additional (7 total) not shown: Medium/heavy Pickup (GVWR greater than 10,000 lbs.), Convertible(excludes sun-roof,t-bar), 3-door/2-door hatchback, Minivan (Chrysler Town and Country, Caravan, Grand Caravan, Voyager, Voyager, Honda-Odyssey, ...), Other or Unknown automobile type, Single-unit straight truck or Cab-Chassis (GVWR greater than 26,000 lbs.), Three-wheel Motorcycle (2 Rear Wheels).
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Vehicle unit records
Rural vs Urban
In September 2023, fatal crashes were nearly evenly split between urban (26) and rural (25) areas, with rural areas accounting for 49% of fatal crashes. This marks a shift from September 2022, where rural areas had a higher proportion with 35 fatal crashes compared to 24 in urban areas, representing 59% of all fatal crashes. The rural share of fatal crashes decreased year-over-year.
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
In September 2023, 'Other Principal Arterial' and 'Minor Arterial' roadways accounted for the most fatal crashes with 17 and 13 incidents, respectively. This represents a decrease for 'Principal Arterial - Other' from 24 in the prior period and a decrease for 'Minor Arterial' from 19. Interstate fatal crashes remained stable at 7 in both periods.
Roadway Functional Class
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Crash-level records
Roadway Ownership
State Highway Agencies continued to own the roadways with the highest number of fatal crashes, with 27 incidents in September 2023, a decrease from 38 in September 2022. Fatal crashes on City or Municipal Highway Agency roads increased from 8 to 13, while County Highway Agency roads saw a slight decrease from 13 to 11.
Roadway Ownership
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Crash-level records
Person Type
Drivers continued to be the most frequently involved person type in fatal crashes, with 72 in September 2023, a decrease from 86 in September 2022. Pedestrian involvement decreased from 14 to 9, while bicyclist involvement slightly increased from 1 to 2. Passenger involvement also saw a decrease from 31 to 25.
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) decreased from 61 in September 2022 to 52 in September 2023. Serious injuries (A) increased from 8 to 11, while minor injuries (B) remained stable at 20 in the prior period and 19 in the current period. The count of persons with no injuries (O) decreased from 28 to 21.
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 Belt' decreased from 80 in September 2022 to 58 in September 2023. Conversely, the number of persons reported as having 'None Used/Not Applicable' safety equipment decreased from 31 in the prior period to 25 in the current period.
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 most common point of impact in fatal crashes for both periods was the '12 Clock Point', which decreased from 51 incidents in September 2022 to 43 incidents in September 2023. '6 Clock Point' impacts remained stable at 6 incidents in both periods. '3 Clock Point' impacts decreased from 5 to 0 (not present in current top 4) and '11 Clock Point' impacts remained stable at 3.
Point of Impact
"Other" combines 4 smaller categories (4 records): Left (1), Non-Collision (1), Right-Back Side (1), Right-Front Side (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 accounted for 33 incidents (64.7%) in September 2023, a slight increase in proportion from 37 incidents (62.7%) in September 2022. Two-vehicle fatal crashes decreased from 19 to 15, while multi-vehicle crashes involving three or more vehicles decreased from 3 (one 3-vehicle, two 4-vehicle) to 3 (all 3-vehicle).
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 5, 2026
Data Coverage
- Reporting period: 2023-09-01 through 2023-09-30 (30 days)
- Geographic scope: Oregon
- Total crash records analyzed: 51
- Total persons involved: 108
- Total vehicles involved: 72
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). "Oregon Crash Intelligence Report: September 2023." Published August 5, 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/oregon/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 5, 2026 · All rights reserved
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