Fatal RoadsSearch

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

Ontonagon County, Michigan: fatal crash statistics

FARS records 1 or 2 deaths in 1 or 2 fatal crashes in Ontonagon County in 2024.

FARS records 13 deaths in 13 fatal crashes in the county from 2015 to 2024.

From 2015 to 2024 the rate is 22.1 deaths for each 100,000 residents in a year.

The rate of Michigan in the same years is 10.6.

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, Ontonagon County was number 79 of 83 counties of Michigan.

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

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

Table 1.Ontonagon County: deaths and fatal crashes in periods of five years, 1975 to 2024
PeriodDeathsFatal crashes
2020 to 202477
2015 to 201966
2010 to 201455
2005 to 20091110
2000 to 2004109
1995 to 19991010
1990 to 1994107
1985 to 19891010
1980 to 19841412
1975 to 19793628

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.Ontonagon County beside Michigan and the United States: deaths for each 100,000 residents
PeriodOntonagon CountyMichiganUnited States
2024n/a10.911.5
2015 to 2024, in a year22.110.611.8

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. No rate is given for a count of 1 or 2.

Population: Census Bureau estimates, vintage 2025. Ontonagon County had 5,866 residents in 2024.

Factors that NHTSA records

Table 3.Ontonagon County: counts by recorded factor, 2015 to 2024
FactorCountCounted amongShareShare in Michigan
A driver recorded as drinkingof 13 fatal crashes513 fatal crashes28.1%
A speeding-related driverof 13 fatal crashes613 fatal crashes25.4%
No restraint usedof 8 occupant deaths with restraint use known38 occupant deathswith restraint use knownn/a39.4%
Pedestriansof 13 deaths013 deaths15.2%
Bicyclistsof 13 deaths013 deaths2.8%
Motorcyclistsof 13 deaths1 or 213 deaths15.2%
On a rural roadof 13 fatal crashes with the condition reported1313 fatal crasheswith the condition reported40.6%
In the darkof 12 fatal crashes with the condition reported612 fatal crasheswith the condition reported46.3%

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.Ontonagon County: 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
Sunday0001 or 21 or 2
Monday01 or 2001 or 2
Tuesday00000
Wednesday001 or 201 or 2
Thursday0001 or 21 or 2
Friday1 or 21 or 201 or 23
Saturday01 or 21 or 21 or 24
All days1 or 233613

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.Ontonagon County: fatal crashes by road function class, 2015 to 2024
Road function classFatal crashesShareShare in Michigan
Interstate00.0%9.0%
Other freeways and expressways00.0%4.0%
Other principal arterial433.3%27.7%
Minor arterial433.3%26.1%
Major collector433.3%18.4%
Minor collector00.0%1.7%
Local00.0%13.2%
Not reported1 or 2n/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.Ontonagon County: fatal crashes by light condition, 2015 to 2024
Light conditionFatal crashes
Daylight5
Dark, not lighted6
Dark, lighted0
Dawn0
Dusk1 or 2
Dark, lighting unknown0
Other or unknown1 or 2
Table 7.Ontonagon County: fatal crashes by weather, 2015 to 2024
WeatherFatal crashes
Clear7
Cloudy1 or 2
Rain1 or 2
Snow, sleet or freezing rain3
Fog, smog or smoke1 or 2
Crosswinds or blowing sand/snow0
Other or not reported0

Routes in the county

No signed route in Ontonagon County has a page. A route page needs 20 or more fatal crashes in a state from 2015 to 2024. All routes in Michigan

Adjacent counties

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

Figure 1.Ontonagon County on the county map of Michigan

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

  • Fewer than 1012 counties
  • 10 to 14.943 counties
  • 15 to 19.919 counties
  • 20 to 29.98 counties
  • 30 or more1 county
  • Ontonagon County: 22.1

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 Michigan

Table 8.Counties that share a boundary line with Ontonagon County
CountyStateDeaths, 2024Deaths, 2015 to 2024For each 100,000 residents in a year
Gogebic CountyMichigan1 or 2117.5
Houghton CountyMichigan1 or 2297.9
Iron CountyMichigan62017.5
Keweenaw CountyMichigan0314.2
Cook CountyMinnesota1 or 247.3
Ashland CountyWisconsin1 or 22213.9

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

Counties of similar population

These counties of Michigan have a population nearest to that of Ontonagon County. 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. Ontonagon County, Michigan: fatal crash statistics. https://fatalroads.com/county/mi/ontonagon/. 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 Ontonagon in the ten years before 2015?

FARS records 16 deaths in Ontonagon County from 2005 to 2014. It records 13 deaths from 2015 to 2024.

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

FARS records a driver as drinking in 5 of 13 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 Ontonagon?

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.