Fatal Roads

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US highwayUS-49

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US Route 49

Fatal crashes 2015–2024 276Deaths 304Counties 16Latest data year 2024

FARS data are based on police crash reports and other sources; the drunk-driving measure is based on the highest BAC of any driver in the crash. Latest data year: 2024. The route is the trafficway recorded for each crash (FARS TWAY_ID); the same route number in another state has its own page.

US Route 49 in Mississippi was the trafficway in 276 fatal crashes between 2015 and 2024, in which 304 people died.

That is 4.3% of the 6,385 fatal crashes in Mississippi over the same years. The ten-year crash count rose 16% from 238 in 2005–2014 to 276 in 2015–2024.

The crashes were concentrated in Forrest County (55), Harrison County (43) and Covington County (30) and 13 other counties.

13.8% of the crashes had a driver reported as drinking (Mississippi: 18.5%) and 9.1% had a speeding-related driver (14.8%); pedestrians were 17.1% and motorcyclists 6.9% of those killed.

276fatal crashes, 2015–2024+16% vs 2005–2014
304people killed1.1 per fatal crash
14%with a drinking driverMississippi: 19%
9%speeding-relatedMississippi: 15%

Fatal crashes per year

020392000200520102015202020242000: 31 crashes2001: 23 crashes2002: 31 crashes2003: 26 crashes2004: 19 crashes2005: 26 crashes2006: 31 crashes2007: 29 crashes2008: 18 crashes2009: 24 crashes2010: 17 crashes2011: 21 crashes2012: 23 crashes2013: 24 crashes2014: 25 crashes2015: 19 crashes2016: 19 crashes2017: 27 crashes2018: 28 crashes2019: 29 crashes2020: 24 crashes2021: 27 crashes2022: 32 crashes2023: 32 crashes2024: 39 crashes
Fatal crashes on US Route 49 (MS) by year, 2000–2024. Latest point: 2024, 39 crashes.

Route identification in FARS is consistent from 2000; earlier years are not shown. Shaded band: the ten-year window used for the shares below.

Compared with all fatal crashes in Mississippi

MeasureUS Route 49Mississippi
Fatal crashes, 2015–20242766,385
Deaths, 2015–20243047,057
Deaths per fatal crash1.11.1
Share of state fatal crashes4.3%100%
Change vs previous ten years+16%-3%

Factor shares

Alcoholcrashes with a driver reported as drinking13.8%
Speedingcrashes with a speeding-related driver9.1%
Pedestriansshare of people killed17.1%
Motorcyclistsshare of people killed6.9%
Night (6pm–6am)share of crashes47.8%

tick marks the Mississippi share. Bars are shares of fatal crashes (alcohol, speeding, darkness, rural) or of people killed (pedestrians, motorcyclists, unrestrained occupants) over the ten-year window.

Counties along the route

#CountyFatal crashes on US-49Share of routeCounty total, all roads
1Forrest County5520%161
2Harrison County4316%289
3Covington County3011%87
4Simpson County269%65
5Stone County228%53
6Rankin County207%180
7Sunflower County155%58
8Humphreys County135%30
9Leflore County135%51
10Hinds County114%481
11Yazoo County114%57
12Holmes County73%71
13Coahoma County52%50
14Madison County21%129
15Tallahatchie County21%32
16Noxubee County10%38

Hour of day

12am3.3%
1am2.9%
2am5.8%
3am1.1%
4am1.8%
5am2.5%
6am5.4%
7am4%
8am2.9%
9am3.6%
10am1.8%
11am3.6%
12pm4.7%
1pm4%
2pm4.3%
3pm5.8%
4pm5.8%
5pm6.2%
6pm5.4%
7pm5.4%
8pm6.9%
9pm5.4%
10pm3.3%
11pm4%

Share of fatal crashes on US Route 49 beginning in each hour, 2015–2024; tick marks the Mississippi share for all roads.

Other routes in Mississippi

All routes and counties in Mississippi

Questions and answers

How many fatal crashes have there been on US Route 49 in Mississippi?

276 fatal crashes with 304 deaths over 2015–2024, per NHTSA's FARS. The route is the trafficway recorded for the crash; the same numbered route in another state has its own page.

Which counties along US Route 49 had the most fatal crashes?

Forrest County (55), Harrison County (43), Covington County (30), Simpson County (26) and Stone County (22).

What share of crashes on US Route 49 involved alcohol or speeding?

13.8% had a driver reported as drinking and 9.1% a speeding-related driver, against 18.5% and 14.8% for all fatal crashes in Mississippi.

When do fatal crashes happen on US Route 49?

47.8% of the crashes were between 6pm and 6am. The hour chart on this page shows the full distribution.

Provenance

Source: NHTSA Fatality Analysis Reporting System, annual national CSV files 2000–2024 (accident, vehicle and person tables), public domain. Route pages are built for signed Interstate, US and state routes with at least 20 fatal crashes in 2015–2024. Data through 31 Dec 2024; generated 30 Sep 2026. See methodology and corrections.