223
Fatal crashes
242
Fatalities
25%
Drunk driver
31
Avg per year
Deadliest fatal-crash clusters in Polk County
Locations with multiple fatal crashes on the same road segment, 2017-2023. Click any location to pull the full report — every individual crash with vehicle, person, and contributing-factor detail.
2 fatal crashes
$9 report →
2 fatalities · 2023
Other Principal Arterial · Des Moines
41.525, -93.597
2 fatal crashes
$9 report →
2 fatalities · 2020–2022
Principal Arterial - Other · Des Moines
41.548, -93.597
2 fatal crashes
$9 report →
2 fatalities · 2017–2019
Principal Arterial - Other · West Des Moines
41.583, -93.703
2 fatal crashes
$9 report →
2 fatalities · 2020–2023
Other Principal Arterial
41.601, -93.367
2 fatal crashes
$9 report →
2 fatalities · 2017–2019
Principal Arterial - Other · Des Moines
41.606, -93.644
Crashes by year
| Year | Crashes | Fatalities | Drunk driver |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | 24 | 26 | 4 |
| 2018 | 24 | 27 | 9 |
| 2019 | 34 | 34 | 9 |
| 2020 | 30 | 38 | 6 |
| 2021 | 41 | 45 | 9 |
| 2022 | 33 | 33 | 10 |
| 2023 | 37 | 39 | 8 |
Cities in Polk County
Fatal crashes by city within Polk County. Need crash history at a specific address or intersection? Our intersection report shows every fatal crash within any radius of a GPS coordinate.
| City | Crashes | Fatalities |
|---|---|---|
| DES MOINES | 112 | 123 |
| WEST DES MOINES | 14 | 14 |
| URBANDALE | 9 | 9 |
| ANKENY | 8 | 10 |
| CLIVE | 5 | 7 |
| BONDURANT | 5 | 5 |
| ALTOONA | 4 | 4 |
| GRIMES | 4 | 4 |
| JOHNSTON | 3 | 3 |
| PLEASANT HILL | 3 | 3 |
| WINDSOR HEIGHTS | 1 | 1 |
| ELKHART | 1 | 1 |
| MITCHELLVILLE | 1 | 1 |
| ALLEMAN | 1 | 1 |
When crashes happen
By month
| Month | Crashes |
|---|---|
| January | 11 |
| February | 8 |
| March | 11 |
| April | 15 |
| May | 23 |
| June | 16 |
| July | 22 |
| August | 26 |
| September | 25 |
| October | 23 |
| November | 25 |
| December | 18 |
Most dangerous hours
| Hour | Crashes |
|---|---|
| 20:00 | 20 |
| 21:00 | 15 |
| 16:00 | 14 |
| 22:00 | 14 |
| 19:00 | 13 |
| 15:00 | 12 |
| 18:00 | 12 |
| 01:00 | 11 |
| 17:00 | 10 |
| 07:00 | 10 |
Vehicles involved in fatal crashes
| Make | Vehicles involved |
|---|---|
| Chevrolet | 62 |
| Ford | 49 |
| Honda | 21 |
| Harley-Davidson | 20 |
| Nissan/Datsun | 19 |
| Toyota | 19 |
| Jeep / Kaiser-Jeep / Willys- Jeep | 16 |
| Dodge | 13 |
| Chrysler | 11 |
| Hyundai | 10 |
Conditions
Weather
| Weather | Crashes |
|---|---|
| Clear | 163 |
| Cloudy | 39 |
| Rain | 9 |
| Fog, Smog, Smoke | 5 |
| Snow | 5 |
| Reported as Unknown | 1 |
| Unknown | 1 |
Collision type
| Type | Crashes |
|---|---|
| Single vehicle / pedestrian / object | 119 |
| Angle | 58 |
| Front-to-Rear | 22 |
| Front-to-Front | 15 |
| Sideswipe - Same Direction | 6 |
| Other | 2 |
| Sideswipe - Opposite Direction | 1 |
Need crash data for a specific location in Polk County?
Our intersection report shows every fatal crash within any radius of a GPS coordinate — with a map, event sequence, contributing factors, vehicle and person details. Used by attorneys for discovery and insurance teams for risk assessment.
For programmatic access to Polk County crash data, see the API guide. $19/mo for full access.
Data source: NHTSA Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), 2017-2023. Updated annually.
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