Memorial Day 2017: fatal car accidents and deaths
Over Memorial Day weekend 2017, Saturday to Monday (May 27 to 29), 352 people died in 314 fatal car accidents on US roads, 1% more than the 347 on the same weekdays around it. It was the fewest of the ten from 2015 to 2024. Memorial Day (the Monday) alone: 114 deaths, against 98 on a normal day.
2016 · 2018 · Every year together, day by day and state by state.
Memorial Day 2017 road deaths in every state
Texas had the most, 47 deaths, then California with 39. In 47 of 51 states and DC at least one person died; a 0 is a real count of none. One year's counts are too small to rank states by; every year together ranks them per resident.
| State | Deaths | Fatal crashes | Pedestrians |
|---|---|---|---|
| Texas | 47 | 40 | 7 |
| California | 39 | 34 | 4 |
| Florida | 36 | 32 | 5 |
| New York | 15 | 15 | 7 |
| Georgia | 15 | 14 | 3 |
| Ohio | 12 | 10 | 5 |
| Wisconsin | 12 | 7 | 0 |
| Michigan | 10 | 10 | 0 |
| Tennessee | 10 | 10 | 2 |
| Illinois | 10 | 9 | 3 |
| South Carolina | 10 | 8 | 0 |
| Louisiana | 9 | 9 | 1 |
| Missouri | 7 | 7 | 2 |
| North Carolina | 7 | 7 | 2 |
| Washington | 7 | 7 | 1 |
| Indiana | 7 | 6 | 1 |
| New Jersey | 7 | 6 | 2 |
| Pennsylvania | 6 | 6 | 1 |
| South Dakota | 6 | 2 | 1 |
| Alabama | 5 | 5 | 1 |
| Arkansas | 5 | 5 | 0 |
| Virginia | 5 | 5 | 0 |
| Arizona | 5 | 3 | 0 |
| Oregon | 5 | 3 | 0 |
| Idaho | 4 | 4 | 0 |
| Kansas | 4 | 4 | 0 |
| Mississippi | 4 | 4 | 0 |
| Kentucky | 4 | 3 | 0 |
| Alaska | 3 | 3 | 0 |
| Maryland | 3 | 3 | 1 |
| Massachusetts | 3 | 3 | 2 |
| Minnesota | 3 | 3 | 1 |
| Utah | 3 | 3 | 0 |
| West Virginia | 3 | 3 | 0 |
| Colorado | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| Connecticut | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| Hawaii | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| Montana | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| Nebraska | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| Nevada | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| New Mexico | 2 | 2 | 1 |
| Oklahoma | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| District of Columbia | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Iowa | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| New Hampshire | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| North Dakota | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Wyoming | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Delaware | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Maine | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Rhode Island | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Vermont | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Source: NHTSA Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), 2024 Annual Report File (released April 2026, subject to revision). How we count
Questions about Memorial Day 2017 fatal car accidents
- How many people died in car crashes on Memorial Day 2017?
- 352 people died in 314 fatal crashes on US roads over Memorial Day weekend 2017, Saturday to Monday (May 27 to 29), 1% more than the 347 on the same weekdays around it. Of them, 53 were pedestrians. Source: NHTSA's Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS).
- Which state had the most road deaths on Memorial Day 2017?
- Texas, with 47 deaths. In 47 of 51 states and DC at least one person died on the roads.
- Was Memorial Day 2017 deadlier than usual?
- 352 road deaths was the fewest of the ten from 2015 to 2024; the average is 397.
Where the Memorial Day 2017 numbers come from
Every fatal crash NHTSA dated from Saturday to Monday of Memorial Day weekend in 2017, in the Fatality Analysis Reporting System, final file. The normal day is the same weekdays in the weeks before and after, averaged (6 of them this year). How the holiday is counted.