JONES COUNTY, Ga. — At Stan's Body Shop in Gray, wrecked cars are piling up, and mechanic BJ Brookins says it always happens "as soon as hunting season starts."
They aren't hitting other drivers on the road. Brookins says, "Depending on the size of the deer, the speed you're traveling, they can cause some pretty serious damage."
This month, about 20 wrecked cars from hitting deer have come into the shop.
Deer will dart onto roadways, making drivers collide with them head-on.
"They're chasing each other across the roadways. They don't pay no attention to nothing except each other, and that's why we have so many," says Captain James Clark with Jones County Sheriff's Office.
October through December is "rut season," otherwise known as mating time for deer. It brings more deer onto roads.
Clark says, "People hit deer all the time." He says last November they had 52 deer-related accidents.
"It's a constant problem all year long, and after the first of the year, you'll start to see the accidents start going back up," says Clark.
This year over the month of October, they've had 33. If you see a deer in the street, don't swerve.
Clark says, "If a deer run into the middle and you can't avoid them, hit the deer. The deer will give. The light pole or that oak tree over there is not going to give, and that's where people get really severely hurt."
A car may get banged up, but, "If you hit a deer, you're going to be OK. We can fix your car," says Brookins.
Whether it's a day time or night, stay alert for any dashing deer.
Last year, The Jones County Sheriff's Office had nearly 450 wrecks, from January to October. About half of them were deer-related accidents, according to Captain James Clark.
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