Fatal RoadsSearch

Edition: FARS 2024, annual fileNHTSA released it on Release dates

Bethel Census Area, Alaska: fatal crash statistics

FARS records no fatal crash in Bethel Census Area in 2024.

FARS records 11 deaths in 10 fatal crashes in the county from 2015 to 2024.

From 2015 to 2024 the rate is 6.0 deaths for each 100,000 residents in a year.

The rate of Alaska in the same years is 9.8.

The county has fewer than 20 deaths in these years, so a small change in the count moves the rate.

By deaths from 2015 to 2024, Bethel Census Area was number 9 of 29 counties of Alaska.

To qualify as a FARS case, the crash had to involve a motor vehicle traveling on a trafficway customarily open to the public and must have resulted in the death of a motorist or a non-motorist within 30 days of the crash.

The set of first files, known as the Annual Report File (ARF), is released following the crash year. The ARF is replaced about a year later with a final file, which contains additional cases or updates to cases that had become available after the ARF was released.

NHTSA's words. Source: NHTSA, Fatality Analysis Reporting System Analytical User's Manual, 1975-2024 (DOT HS 813 794, April 2026), copied on .

This page rests on the FARS 2024 annual file. NHTSA released it on . NHTSA can revise the counts in the final file. Release dates

Since the last update: no figure of this county has a change on record.

Deaths and fatal crashes by year

Bethel Census Area has fewer than 20 deaths from 2015 to 2024. This page gives totals of five years, not single years.

Table 1.Bethel Census Area: deaths and fatal crashes in periods of five years, 1975 to 2024
PeriodDeathsFatal crashes
2020 to 20241 or 21 or 2
2015 to 201998
2010 to 201433
2005 to 200900
2000 to 200444
1995 to 19991 or 21 or 2
1990 to 199433
1985 to 198933
1980 to 198444
1975 to 197933

Note: a count of 1 or 2 is written "1 or 2". A death is in FARS when it occurs in 30 days or less after the crash.

Rate for each 100,000 residents

Table 2.Bethel Census Area beside Alaska and the United States: deaths for each 100,000 residents
PeriodBethel Census AreaAlaskaUnited States
20240.09.511.5
2015 to 2024, in a year6.09.811.8

Note: the rate divides the deaths in the county by its residents. Persons who do not live in the county are in the deaths, not in the residents.

Population: Census Bureau estimates, vintage 2025. Bethel Census Area had 18,365 residents in 2024.

Factors that NHTSA records

Table 3.Bethel Census Area: counts by recorded factor, 2015 to 2024
FactorCountCounted amongShareShare in Alaska
A driver recorded as drinkingof 10 fatal crashes510 fatal crashes33.6%
A speeding-related driverof 10 fatal crashes610 fatal crashes38.7%
No restraint usedof 6 occupant deaths with restraint use known1 or 26 occupant deathswith restraint use knownn/a47.7%
Pedestriansof 11 deaths411 deaths17.9%
Bicyclistsof 11 deaths1 or 211 deaths1.5%
Motorcyclistsof 11 deaths011 deaths10.8%
On a rural roadof 10 fatal crashes with the condition reported1010 fatal crasheswith the condition reported53.1%
In the darkof 10 fatal crashes with the condition reported610 fatal crasheswith the condition reported44.8%

Note: FARS records a driver as drinking when police reported alcohol involvement or a test of the driver was positive for alcohol. It is not NHTSA's alcohol-impaired measure, which uses a blood alcohol concentration of .08 g/dL or higher. One crash can be in two or more rows. NHTSA's definitions

Note that alcohol data is often missing. For that reason, this data element may under-count the actual number of drinking drivers.

NHTSA's words. Source: NHTSA, Fatality Analysis Reporting System Analytical User's Manual, 1975-2024 (DOT HS 813 794, April 2026), copied on .

Weekday, time and road class

Table 4.Bethel Census Area: fatal crashes by weekday and time of day, 2015 to 2024
WeekdayMidnight to 6 a.m.6 a.m. to noonNoon to 6 p.m.6 p.m. to midnightAll
Sunday00000
Monday00000
Tuesday00000
Wednesday00000
Thursday001 or 201 or 2
Friday1 or 201 or 21 or 23
Saturday01 or 21 or 21 or 25
All days1 or 21 or 2439

Note: a cell with a stronger shade has a larger count. The table has the fatal crashes with a known hour and weekday.

Table 5.Bethel Census Area: fatal crashes by road function class, 2015 to 2024
Road function classFatal crashesShareShare in Alaska
Interstate00.0%33.3%
Other freeways and expressways00.0%0.0%
Other principal arterial00.0%26.7%
Minor arterial1 or 210.0%12.7%
Major collector330.0%11.6%
Minor collector1 or 220.0%7.4%
Local440.0%8.3%
Not reported0n/an/a

Note: the classes are those of the Federal Highway Administration. The shares are of the crashes with a reported class. Road function classes

Light condition and weather
Table 6.Bethel Census Area: fatal crashes by light condition, 2015 to 2024
Light conditionFatal crashes
Daylight4
Dark, not lighted3
Dark, lighted1 or 2
Dawn0
Dusk0
Dark, lighting unknown1 or 2
Other or unknown0
Table 7.Bethel Census Area: fatal crashes by weather, 2015 to 2024
WeatherFatal crashes
Clear7
Cloudy1 or 2
Rain0
Snow, sleet or freezing rain1 or 2
Fog, smog or smoke0
Crosswinds or blowing sand/snow0
Other or not reported0

Routes in the county

No signed route in Bethel Census Area has a page. A route page needs 20 or more fatal crashes in a state from 2015 to 2024. All routes in Alaska

Adjacent counties

These lists are for navigation. They are in name order.

Figure 1.Bethel Census Area on the county map of Alaska

Deaths for each 100,000 residents in a year, 2015 to 2024

  • Fewer than 1011 counties
  • 10 to 14.94 counties
  • 15 to 19.92 counties
  • 20 to 29.94 counties
  • 30 or more2 counties
  • Count of 1 or 2, no rate shown6 counties
  • Bethel Census Area: 6.0

The limits of the classes are the same for every state. A county with few residents can show a high rate from few deaths. A class is not a judgement of a county. The full map and the table of counties of Alaska

Table 8.Counties that share a boundary line with Bethel Census Area
CountyStateDeaths, 2024Deaths, 2015 to 2024For each 100,000 residents in a year
Dillingham Census AreaAlaska01 or 2n/a
Kenai Peninsula BoroughAlaska88814.8
Kusilvak Census AreaAlaska044.9
Lake and Peninsula BoroughAlaska01 or 2n/a
Matanuska-Susitna BoroughAlaska1818617.0
Yukon-Koyukuk Census AreaAlaska1 or 21324.6

Source of the list: Census Bureau county adjacency file, 2026 edition.

Counties of similar population

These counties of Alaska have a population nearest to that of Bethel Census Area. The list is for navigation and is in name order. The number is the deaths from 2015 to 2024.

Official channels

These links go to the sites of the agencies. They were checked on .

Cite this page

Fatal Roads. Bethel Census Area, Alaska: fatal crash statistics. https://fatalroads.com/county/ak/bethel/. Source: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Fatality Analysis Reporting System, FARS 2024 annual file. Data to .

The address of this page does not change.

Source of the figures

Counts: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Fatality Analysis Reporting System, national files of 1975 to 2024. The factors use the vehicle and person files from 2015. Residents: Census Bureau, Population Estimates Program, vintage 2025. Map: Census Bureau cartographic boundary file, 2021 edition. Data to . The figures are totals. No page of this site is about one crash or one person.

How the figures are made. Data sources and licences. Corrections.

Questions

How many deaths did FARS record in Bethel in the ten years before 2015?

FARS records 3 deaths in Bethel Census Area from 2005 to 2014. It records 11 deaths from 2015 to 2024.

How many fatal crashes in Bethel had a driver recorded as drinking?

FARS records a driver as drinking in 5 of 10 fatal crashes from 2015 to 2024. This count is not NHTSA's alcohol-impaired measure. NHTSA says that alcohol data is often missing, so the count may be too low.

How many fatal crashes did FARS record on signed routes in Bethel?

No signed route in the county has a page. A route page needs 20 or more fatal crashes in a state from 2015 to 2024. The county totals include crashes on all public roads.