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CrashStats

Fatal M40 crash in Buckinghamshire on 19 February 1979 at 11:55 involving a car

Four cars, a van and a lorry were involved in a crash on the M40 in Buckinghamshire at 11:55 on Monday 19 February 1979. The 44-year-old male driver of vehicle 1 was killed and four other people were slightly injured.

It happened in daylight in fog or mist on a wet dual carriageway with a 70 mph limit, away from any junction.

Severity
Fatal
Date
19 Feb 1979
Monday, 11:55
Vehicles
6
Car and 5 others
Casualties
5
1 killed, 4 slightly injured

Location of the crash

Police recorded the crash at latitude 51.65583, longitude -0.89987, in the HP14 postcode district. The location was in the former Wycombe district.

Map of where the crash happened in Buckinghamshire

Use the arrow keys to move the map and the plus and minus keys to zoom.

  • 1 crash
  • Fatal

Collision details

Basic information

Reference
197943A034029
Council area
Buckinghamshire
Police force
Thames Valley

Road and location details

First road class
Motorway
First road number
40
Road type
Dual carriageway
Speed limit
70 mph

Junction information

Junction type
Not at junction or within 20 metres

Pedestrian crossing information

Crossing facilities
No physical crossing facility within 50 m

Environmental conditions

Light conditions
Daylight
Weather
Fog or mist
Road surface
Wet or damp
Carriageway hazards
Involvement with previous collision

The 6 nearest recorded crashes

The nearest, 22 metres away, was a slight injury crash on 30 December 2005.

Vehicles involved (6)

  • Vehicle 1: Car

    Manoeuvre
    Slowing or stopping
    Travelling from
    East
    Travelling to
    West
    Hit object in carriageway
    Parked vehicle
    First point of impact
    Front
    Driver sex
    Male
    Driver age
    44 years

  • Vehicle 2: Car

    Manoeuvre
    Going ahead
    Travelling from
    East
    Travelling to
    West
    Skidding and overturning
    Skidded
    Hit object in carriageway
    Previous accident
    First point of impact
    Front
    Driver sex
    Male
    Driver age
    24 years

  • Vehicle 3: Car

    Manoeuvre
    Going ahead
    Travelling from
    East
    Travelling to
    West
    Skidding and overturning
    Skidded
    Hit object in carriageway
    Previous accident
    First point of impact
    Nearside
    Driver sex
    Male
    Driver age
    29 years

  • Vehicle 4: Car

    Manoeuvre
    Going ahead
    Travelling from
    East
    Travelling to
    West
    First point of impact
    Back
    Driver sex
    Female
    Driver age
    32 years

  • Vehicle 5: Van

    Van or goods vehicle up to 3.5 tonnes

    Manoeuvre
    Waiting to go ahead
    Travelling from
    East
    Travelling to
    West
    First point of impact
    Nearside
    Driver sex
    Male
    Driver age
    45 years

  • Vehicle 6: Lorry

    Goods vehicle over 3.5 tonnes

    Manoeuvre
    Waiting to go ahead
    Travelling from
    East
    Travelling to
    West
    First point of impact
    Back
    Driver sex
    Male
    Driver age
    24 years

Casualties (5)

  • Casualty 1: Driver

    Fatal

    Male, aged 44, car occupant, in vehicle 1 (Car)

  • Casualty 2: Driver

    Slight

    Female, aged 32, car occupant, in vehicle 4 (Car)

  • Casualty 3: Passenger

    Slight

    Female, aged 19, car occupant, in vehicle 4 (Car)

    Car passenger
    Rear seat passenger

  • Casualty 4: Passenger

    Slight

    Female, aged 14, car occupant, in vehicle 4 (Car)

    Car passenger
    Rear seat passenger

  • Casualty 5: Passenger

    Slight

    Female, aged 10, car occupant, in vehicle 4 (Car)

    Car passenger
    Rear seat passenger

Data source

This record comes from the Department for Transport’s road safety data (STATS19), in which police forces in Great Britain record every road crash reported to them where someone was injured. It is reference 197943A034029 in the data published on GOV.UK under the Open Government Licence v3.0, and one of the crashes counted in the Buckinghamshire road accident statistics for 1979.