Thanksgiving 2021: fatal car accidents and deaths
Over Thanksgiving week 2021, Wednesday to Sunday (November 24 to 28), 584 people died in 525 fatal car accidents on US roads, 7% fewer than the 628 on the same weekdays around it. It was the third most of the ten from 2015 to 2024. Thanksgiving Day alone: 126 deaths, against 108 on a normal day. The Wednesday before alone: 96 deaths, against 109 on a normal day.
2020 · 2022 · Every year together, day by day and state by state.
Thanksgiving 2021 road deaths in every state
Texas had the most, 73 deaths, then California with 65. In 49 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 | 73 | 67 | 20 |
| California | 65 | 60 | 26 |
| Florida | 47 | 42 | 7 |
| Louisiana | 28 | 20 | 6 |
| Georgia | 25 | 25 | 2 |
| Arizona | 21 | 18 | 2 |
| Ohio | 17 | 14 | 1 |
| South Carolina | 16 | 15 | 2 |
| Colorado | 16 | 12 | 2 |
| Pennsylvania | 15 | 15 | 1 |
| North Carolina | 15 | 14 | 3 |
| Michigan | 15 | 13 | 2 |
| New Jersey | 14 | 12 | 6 |
| New York | 14 | 12 | 3 |
| Tennessee | 13 | 13 | 1 |
| Alabama | 13 | 12 | 2 |
| Indiana | 13 | 12 | 1 |
| Missouri | 13 | 10 | 0 |
| Illinois | 12 | 12 | 4 |
| Washington | 12 | 11 | 4 |
| Mississippi | 11 | 9 | 0 |
| Arkansas | 10 | 9 | 0 |
| Kentucky | 10 | 9 | 0 |
| Maryland | 10 | 9 | 1 |
| New Mexico | 9 | 8 | 2 |
| Nevada | 9 | 7 | 0 |
| Oregon | 8 | 8 | 3 |
| Oklahoma | 7 | 7 | 1 |
| Virginia | 6 | 6 | 3 |
| Minnesota | 6 | 5 | 0 |
| Wisconsin | 4 | 4 | 0 |
| Kansas | 4 | 3 | 1 |
| Utah | 4 | 3 | 1 |
| Connecticut | 3 | 3 | 0 |
| Idaho | 3 | 3 | 0 |
| Iowa | 3 | 3 | 1 |
| West Virginia | 3 | 3 | 1 |
| Massachusetts | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| Montana | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| Nebraska | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| South Dakota | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| Wyoming | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| Alaska | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Delaware | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Hawaii | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Maine | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| New Hampshire | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| North Dakota | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Rhode Island | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| District of Columbia | 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 Thanksgiving 2021 fatal car accidents
- How many people died in car crashes on Thanksgiving 2021?
- 584 people died in 525 fatal crashes on US roads over Thanksgiving week 2021, Wednesday to Sunday (November 24 to 28), 7% fewer than the 628 on the same weekdays around it. Of them, 110 were pedestrians. Source: NHTSA's Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS).
- Which state had the most road deaths on Thanksgiving 2021?
- Texas, with 73 deaths. In 49 of 51 states and DC at least one person died on the roads.
- Was Thanksgiving 2021 deadlier than usual?
- 584 road deaths was the third most of the ten from 2015 to 2024; the average is 546. The deadliest was 2017 and the least deadly 2019.
Where the Thanksgiving 2021 numbers come from
Every fatal crash NHTSA dated from Wednesday to Sunday of Thanksgiving week in 2021, 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.