The Wahkiakum County Eagle - Established as The Skamokawa Eagle in 1891

The Washington State Patrol has commented on a study showing increased risk of traffic hazards from people playing Pokémon Go.

The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) released a national report on Friday which tracked 14 Pokémon Go related crashes over a 10 day period in July of this year. The researchers correlated driver’s tweets with crash data found on news reports. According to the study:

--Eighteen percent of tweets indicated a person was playing and driving (“omg I’m catching Pokémon and driving”)

--11 percent indicated a passenger was playing (“just made sis drive me around to find Pokémon”).

--Four percent indicated a pedestrian was distracted (“almost got hit by a car playing Pokémon GO”).

The state patrol is urging drivers to put the brakes on using Pokémon Go or other apps while behind the wheel of a motor vehicle. The WSP has already witnessed collisions and dangerous driving behavior as a result of drivers and passengers distracted by the online game.

On July 18, the state patrol investigated its first collision due to a driver distracted by a Pokémon Go application. The collision occurred on State Route 202 near 332nd Street in Fall City shortly after the popular app was launched. A distracted driver ran into a stopped car carrying a mother and her son. No one was injured.

In addition to the Pokémon Go collision, troopers have stopped drivers for being distracted while driving with the application open. Over two days in July in the Wenatchee, area a trooper stopped two cars for driving while distracted due to the app.

In the first instance, on July 11, at 6 p.m., the trooper stopped a young male driver who appeared to be texting while driving. When questioned, the driver said he was playing Pokémon Go.

The next day on July 12, at 1:30 a.m., the same trooper made a traffic stop along Airport Road after noticing a vehicle traveling very slowly and weaving in and out of lanes and failing to stop at a stop sign on Old Riverside Highway. The 17-year-old male driver had his phone with the Pokémon Go game up.

The phenomenon of driving while distracted is growing. According to the Washington Traffic Safety Commission, fatalities caused by distracted driving increased by 30.8 percent in 2015.

According to the Department of Licensing, 24 percent of young drivers involved in Washington fatal crashes were distracted in 2015, up from 18 percent in 2008.