Pedestrian Deaths Climb in Connecticut, Nationwide

The number of pedestrian deaths in Connecticut in the first half of 2018 jumped by 53 percent compared to the same period the previous year, according to preliminary data released by the Governor’s Highway Safety Association. There were 29 pedestrian deaths between January and June in Connecticut in 2018, compared with 19 between January and June 2017.  Based on population, Connecticut’s fatality rate was 16th among the states.

Nationwide, there was a 3 percent increases, as the number of pedestrian deaths climbed from 2,790 to 2,876 during the six month periods.  Five states (Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, and Texas) accounted for almost half — 46 percent — of all pedestrian deaths during the first six months of 2018.

Overall, pedestrian fatalities during the first half of 2018 declined in 23 states compared with the same period in 2017.   Six states (Alabama, Indiana, Michigan, Nevada, Oklahoma and Wisconsin) reported double-digit declines in both the number and percent change in pedestrian fatalities from the same period in 2017. Three states (Iowa, New Hampshire and Utah) reported two consecutive years of declining numbers of pedestrian fatalities.

During the 10-year period of 2008 to 2017, according to the National Highway traffic Safety Administration, the number of pedestrian fatalities in the U.S. increased by 35 percent, from 4,414 deaths in 2008 to 5,977 deaths in 2017. This translates into more than 1,500 additional pedestrian deaths in 2017 compared with 2008. At the same time that pedestrian deaths have been increasing, the number of all other traffic deaths combined decreased by six percent.

In its review of state efforts to promote pedestrian safety, an initiative in Connecticut is highlighted:  “Connecticut introduced the “Watch for Me CT” campaign, which is a statewide educational community outreach campaign involving media components and community engagement in partnership with CT Children’s Medical Center.” A statewide signage project was recently completed to ensure pedestrian signage was up to date with current standards, including near schools and bus stops, the report states, indicating that “every state is addressing pedestrian safety using a combination of engineering, education and enforcement.”

In addition, the GHSA report indicates that nationwide “about 75 percent of pedestrian fatalities occur after dark, and increases in pedestrian fatalities are occurring largely at night. From 2008 to 2017 the number of nighttime pedestrian fatalities increased by 45 percent, compared to a much smaller, 11 percent increase in daytime pedestrian fatalities.”

The change in the prevalence of various vehicle-types on the road is also noted, with the report pointing out that pedestrians struck by a large SUV are twice as likely to die as those struck by car.

Libraries Join Response to Connecticut’s Opioid Crisis; Stand Ready to Save Lives

The collective response to America’s opioid crisis has opened a new front in Connecticut in an unlikely location – the public library.  Driven by a desire to be prepared to save a life, a growing number of libraries – in communities large and small – now have the opioid reversal drug naloxone on hand, with librarians trained in how to use it. Naloxone is a medication that can reverse and block the effects of other opioids.  It can very quickly restore normal respiration to a person whose breathing has slowed or stopped as a result of overdosing with heroin or prescription opioid pain medications.

The U.S. Surgeon General has issued a nationwide public health advisory, to “urge more Americans to carry a potentially lifesaving medication that can reverse the effects of an opioid overdose.” That office reports that an estimated 2.1 million people in the U.S. struggle with an opioid use disorder.

For Marlborough’s Richmond Memorial Library, the decision to train three staff members to administer the medication was wholly consistent with what a library is all about, as director Nancy Wood explains.

“I liken it to the defibrillator that we brought in to the library two years ago.  If you are saving a life for one reason, you can save a life for another.  And it is a cultural thing for librarians to want to help people.  It is what we do.”

As a significant public place in Marlborough, open more hours than just about any other building in town, Wood says that although “hopefully we never have to use it,” she and her staff felt it was important to be trained and ready.  The AHM Youth & Family Services organization provided the training last March.

Rates of opioid overdose deaths are rapidly increasing nationwide and in Connecticut.  Since 2010, the number of opioid overdose deaths in the U.S. has doubled from more than 21,000 to more than 42,000 in 2016. Overdose deaths in Connecticut have nearly tripled in a six-year period, from 357 in 2012 to 1,038 in 2017. Of those 1,038 deaths, 677 involved fentanyl — a synthetic opioid drug 30 to 50 times more powerful than heroin — either by itself or with at least one other drug, according to published reports.

According to the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention, between June 2017 and June 2018, there were 1,056 reported cases of drug overdose deaths, based on provisional data, in Connecticut.  An analysis by the Kaiser Family Foundation concluded that the opioid overdose death rate in Connecticut was the 10^th highest in the nation, and the percentage increase between 2016 and 2017 was 17^th highest in the U.S., exceeding the national average.

Hartford recently announced a $10,000 grant from CIGNA Foundation that will train librarians in the city and cover the purchase of naloxone for city libraries.

“As a public institution, we see that our entire community is impacted by the opioid crisis; it was clear that a rapid and robust response to the problems caused by the opioid drug crisis was imperative,” said library CEO Bridget Quinn-Carey as the grant was announced earlier this month.  Library officials also plan to provide information about opioid abuse awareness and host education and information forums.

When the town of Canton made training available for department heads last year, library director Sarah McCusker took the one-day session.  Like Wood, she views it as an extension of first aid training that can help a patron in distress.

“It’s the same as knowing CPR or having an AED on-site.  We call 911 immediately, but we see everything, and we’d like to be prepared,” McCusker explained.  She also believes employees in public spaces should be “widely trained” to assist in emergency situations. And she anticipates that if her town government makes training in the use of naloxone available again this year, although it is not mandated, additional staff members will choose to attend.

The Connecticut Library Consortium indicates that while official figures are not available, reports of libraries having naloxone available, along with official policies governing its use and trained staff members, are increasing.  Hartford, Marlborough, Canton and Avon are among them.  Other libraries have librarians on staff who have sought and received individual training. For many libraries, it is a major health issue that their municipalities and local governing boards are reviewing, and one that impacts cities and small towns.

The naloxone brand NARCAN® Nasal Spray is a pre-filled, needle-free device that requires no assembly and is sprayed into one nostril while patients lay on their back. Those prepared to administer it have been trained on the signs of an opioid overdoes, and how to respond immediately as 911 is called for a local ambulance response.

“Public libraries are responsible for meeting the wide-ranging needs of their communities. Yes, libraries offer books and storytime programs and research help that goes beyond Google. But they are also the place to turn to find a job, become a citizen, discover a new app, find quality healthcare information, make art, or learn a new skill,” said Jennifer Keohane, Executive Director of the Connecticut Library Consortium.  “Having library staff who are trained to administer NARCAN is another way that libraries are evolving with their communities and are ready to provide help whenever and however it is needed.”

Pedestrian, Cyclist Deaths After Dark Rising Nationally; Highest Rate Among CT Metro Areas in New Haven Region

Across the United States, a total of 4,440 pedestrians and 364 cyclists were killed at night, in dark conditions,  in 2017.  A new analysis reveals that those after-dark fatalities account for the vast majority of all such fatalities each year. The share of all fatalities occurring in dark conditions is slowly rising, climbing from to nearly 72 percent in 2017 from 67 percent in 2010 and 65 percent in 2007.  Roughly a third occur in dark, unlighted conditions, while the other approximately 40 percent are reported near streetlights or other dark, lighted conditions. The analysis, by GOVERNING magazine, looked at the total pedestrian/cyclist deaths and per capita fatality rates for metropolitan areas with populations exceeding 200,000, including four metro areas in Connecticut, 2015-2017.  Total 2015-17 fatalities nationally were 20,004, with 14,153 during hours when it was dark.

The highest number of fatalities in that multi-year period in Connecticut during darkness occurred in the New Haven metropolitan area, 32.  The Bridgeport-Norwalk-Stamford region has 27 deaths, the Hartford area had 26.  The Norwich-New London region had 5 deaths.

Nationally, pedestrian and cyclist fatalities occurring in all lighting conditions have generally climbed in recent years nationally, but the largest increases are occurring after sunset.

Between 2010 and 2017, annual fatalities in dark conditions (both lighted and unlighted) jumped by 46 percent. Over the same period, they rose only 15 percent in daylight. Totals for dawn (+33 percent) and dusk (+43 percent) lighting conditions also increased significantly, although they accounted for just a few hundred such traffic deaths, GOVERNING reported.

The data breaks down whether the fatality occurred in dark but lighted or dark, unlighted conditions.  In each Connecticut metro area, the vast majority occurred in dark but lighted circumstances.  The numbers were 22-10 in the New Haven area, 22-5 in the Bridgeport region and 21-5 in the Hartford area.

The analysis used National Highway Traffic Safety Administration data, which records lighting conditions in its traffic fatality database. The federal Office of Management and Budget’s latest definitions for metro areas, current as of September 2018, were used.

Top Companies Profiting from War: Two Have Major CT Presence

An analysis to determine the top 20 companies across the globe that are “profiting the most from war,” finds two with Connecticut connections. Virginia’s General Dynamics, parent company of Groton-based Electric Boat is ranked at #6 and Farmington-headquartered United Technologies is at #11. In its analysis, the website 24/7 Wall St. indicated that “global military spending increased by 3.9% in 2017, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. The global rise was driven partially by a $9.6 billion hike in U.S. spending — the United States is the world’s largest defense spender by a wide margin. What growing arms investments will mean for the future of international peace is unclear. What is clear is that defense companies around the world are benefitting tremendously.”

The analysis also found that:

• Total arms sales among the world’s 100 largest defense contractors topped $398 billion in 2017 after climbing for the third consecutive years.
• Russia became the second largest arms-producing country this year, overtaking the United Kingdom for the first time since 2002.
• The United States is home to half of the world’s 10 largest defense contractors, and American companies account for 57% of total arms sales of the world’s 100 largest defense contractors (based on SIPRI data).

Leading the list was Maryland-based Lockheed Martin, the largest defense contractor in the world, with $44.9 billion in arms sales.  Rounding out the top five were Boeing, Raytheon, BAE Systems, and Northrup Grumman.

For United Technologies, the analysis indicated arms sales of $7.8 billion, total sales of $59.8 billion, and profit of $4.9 billion, led by its subsidiary brands Collins Aerospace and Pratt & Whitney.  Collins Aerospace designs and sells advanced systems for military helicopters, including rescue hoists, autopilot systems, and laser guided weapon warning systems, the report noted. Pratt & Whitney designs and manufactures engines currently in use by 34 militaries worldwide.

United Technologies recently announced plans to split into three independent companies. Plans are for company’s defense division to remain under the United Technologies name, as the Otis Elevator Company and Carrier breaking off as independent entities.

During 2017, General Dynamics – based in Falls Church, Virginia, - sold $19.5 billion worth of arms, the fifth most of any U.S. company and the sixth most of any company worldwide. In the past year, General Dynamics earned a $5.1 billion contract to design and develop a prototype of the Columbia-class submarine. Electric Boat was awarded a contract modification to continue development of the US Navy’s next-generation Columbia-class ballistic-missile submarine.

“In close collaboration with the navy and the submarine industrial base, Electric Boat will continue to lead key aspects of the Columbia-class development effort,” said General Dynamics Electric Boat president Jeffrey S Geiger.  “This work includes design, material procurement, construction and operating cost reduction. The entire Columbia-class team is committed to achieving an affordable and effective programme. Our nation’s security depends on it.”

Failures in Federal Housing Policy Focus of Media Investigation, Hartford Concerns Highlighted

An NBC News investigation of the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development has found that more than 1,000 out of HUD’s nearly 28,000 federally subsidized multifamily properties failed their most recent inspection — a failure rate that is more than 30 percent higher than in 2016, according to an analysis of HUD records. When NBC broke the story last week of the agency’s dismal record of responding to conditions that at times have been described a “life-threatening,” the example cited most prominently was in Hartford.

The news report stated that “A federal housing inspection in February confirmed living conditions were abysmal … throughout the 52-unit Section 8 development known as the Infill apartments. The property scored only 27 points out of 100, far below the 60 points needed to pass the mandatory health and safety inspection.”  Infill is located in Hartford’s North End. 

“More than nine months after the inspection, federally mandated deadlines for action have come and gone, and residents say little has changed,” NBC’s Stephanie Gosk reported, despite “citations for exposed wiring, missing smoke detectors and bug infestations,” noted that “the Infill units racked up 113 health and safety violations — including 24 that HUD deemed ‘life-threatening.’”

“In one of Hartford’s poorest neighborhoods, a three-month investigation by NBC News found that HUD failed to comply with federal laws requiring prompt action against the owner of a property that authorities knew was unsafe, unhealthy and in disrepair, according to documents released through the Freedom of Information Act,” Gosk reported.

While the agency pointed out that 96 percent nationwide passed inspections, NBC reported that “HUD’s enforcement office, tasked with going after the worst landlords, now has the lowest staff levels since 1999, according to a federal watchdog.”

“In the case of Infill, though, HUD acknowledged that the landlord failed to deliver,” NBC News reported. “The owner provided certain assurances to our field folks that, in the end, did not happen,” HUD spokesman Brian Sullivan said in an email to NBC News. “That hasn't stopped the federal subsidies,” NBC News reported.

"It's a flow of money that continues to come," AJ Johnson, a local pastor who has helped the tenants organize, told NBC News.  “Whether it’s indifference or incompetence, the Trump administration’s failures in Connecticut and around the country cannot be excused. Someone must be held accountable,” said U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy, who led previous efforts to strengthen the HUD inspection process, NBC News reported. “Secretary [Ben] Carson owes it to these families to present a concrete plan for how he will make this better, and how he’ll make sure nothing like this ever happens again.”

Infill’s owner, meanwhile, is “set for years to come,” the NBC News report concluded.  “In July 2017, just seven months before the failed inspection, HUD renewed its contract with Isaacson for 20 years — a deal worth over $14 million.”

The NBC News investigation was reported, in addition to Gosk, by Suzy Khimm, Laura Strickler and Hanna Rappleye, and included interviews with numerous tenants of the property and other individuals in Hartford and Washington.