Lake Waccamaw, NC truck route planning & crash data
Plan safer truck routes in Lake Waccamaw: commercial truck and garbage truck crashes in Lake Waccamaw and Columbus County, dangerous roads, seasonality and route safety data for fleets. Patterns use Columbus County numbers.
Where fatal truck crashes happened
Risk scorecard
Key findings
Snapshot
Crashes by month
Garbage trucks vs all trucks
4.5 deaths per 100 garbage-truck crashes vs 6.2 for all trucks.
Deadliest roads
How Columbus County compares with North Carolina
Columbus County against North Carolina and the US, 2015–2025 (years with complete crash reporting). Per-resident rates make big and small places comparable.
Where Columbus County stands out
Full comparison
| Measure (2015–2025) | Columbus County | North Carolina | United States | vs state |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crashes per 100k residents / yr | 105.3 | 61.3 | 49.7 | 1.7× the state |
| Deaths per 100 crashes | 6.2 | 2.5 | 3.4 | 2.5× the state |
| Injuries per crash | 0.87 | 0.66 | 0.49 | 1.3× the state |
| Garbage-truck share | 3.8% | 2.6% | 2.3% | 1.5× the state |
| On snow, slush or ice | 0.2% | 1.7% | 6.2% | 90% below the state |
| Morning rush (6–10 am) | 23.3% | 24.0% | 23.7% | same |
| In rain, sleet or snow | 6.9% | 10.5% | 13.8% | 34% below the state |
| Winter months (Nov–Mar) | 41.5% | 41.0% | 41.9% | same |
| After dark | 24.5% | 20.4% | 24.8% | 1.2× the state |
Columbus County sits below North Carolina on on snow, slush or ice and in rain, sleet or snow. Where it is higher: crashes per 100k residents / yr, deaths per 100 crashes and injuries per crash.
Columbus County at a glance: 6.2 deaths per 100 truck crashes, vs 2.5 in North Carolina.
Overview
Police reported 611 crashes involving commercial trucks in Columbus County since 2015: 526 people were injured and 36 were killed.
In complete reporting years that works out to about one truck crash every 7 days.
Only 23 truck crashes were reported in Lake Waccamaw since 2015; patterns below come from Columbus County as a whole.
When crashes happen
Truck crashes peak in July (10.5% of the year) and are lowest in January (7.0%).
The five winter months (November to March) hold 41.5% of truck crashes, against 41.0% across North Carolina.
More truck crashes happen at 12–1 pm than at any other hour (9.7%).
0.2% of truck crashes here happened on snow, slush or ice, against 1.7% across North Carolina.
Where crashes happen
Roads with fatal crashes involving a large truck within 10 miles of Lake Waccamaw since 2015: US-74 (3) and SR-211 (1). No single road stands out.
Garbage & waste trucks
26 crashes involved a garbage or refuse truck, a 4.3% share (North Carolina: 2.6%).
Their busiest month is February, with 23% of garbage-truck crashes.
Deaths per 100 garbage-truck crashes: 4.5, vs 6.2 for all truck crashes.
Route planning tips for Lake Waccamaw fleets
- Review driver schedules for July, the month with the most truck crashes.
- For residential and commercial waste routes, look again at February schedules: garbage-truck crashes peak then.
- Check your own stops for crash hotspots and low bridges with the free Route Planner.
About the data
This report uses the FMCSA crash file (reported crashes of trucks over 10,000 lb) and NHTSA FARS (fatal crashes). It reports the numbers without guessing at reasons.
Truck crashes by year: all trucks vs garbage trucks
Seasonality: when trucks crash in Columbus County
By hour of day
Most dangerous roads for trucks
| Road | Fatal truck crashes since 2015 (within 10 miles) |
|---|---|
| US-74 | 3 |
| SR-211 | 1 |
Roads named most in all truck crash reports
| Road | Truck crashes since 2015 (Columbus County) |
|---|---|
| International Paper | 7 |
| Love Mill Rd | 6 |
| Jk Powell Blvd | 5 |
| Joe Brown Hwy | 3 |
| N Brown St | 3 |
| N Jk Powell Blvd | 3 |
| Han-Dee Hugo | 2 |
| Hickman Rd | 2 |
Lake Waccamaw at a glance
| Population | 1,227 |
| Land area | 2.8 sq mi |
| Density | 437 per sq mi |
| Median household income (ZIP 28450) | $69,554 |
| Median home value (ZIP 28450) | $254,369 |
Waste facilities and haulers nearby
Historical data: truck crashes in Columbus County since the 1990s
Combines the FMCSA crash file (all reported truck crashes, real coverage from about 1990) with NHTSA FARS (fatal crashes involving a large truck, 1982–2024).
| Decade | Truck crashes / yr | Change | Fatal crashes / yr (FARS) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 27 | — | 3.6 |
| 2000s | 35 | +30% | 2.3 |
| 2010s | 52 | +49% | 2.5 |
| 2020s | 47 | -11% | 2.6 |
From the 1990s to the 2020s, yearly reported truck crashes went from 27 to 47. Some of the change may reflect how crashes were reported. Fatal crashes involving a large truck averaged 3.2 a year in 2016–19 and 2.6 a year in 2020–24.
Nearby places
Questions fleets ask about Lake Waccamaw
How common are truck crashes in Lake Waccamaw?
611 truck crashes have been reported in Columbus County since 2015, with 36 deaths and 526 injuries.
Which month has the most truck crashes in Lake Waccamaw?
Truck crashes in Columbus County peak in July, with 10.5% of the year's crashes.
Are garbage truck crashes common in Lake Waccamaw?
Since 2015, Columbus County has reported 26 garbage-truck crashes, or 4.3% of its truck crashes.
What is the truck crash rate in Lake Waccamaw compared with North Carolina?
Columbus County records 105.3 truck crashes per 100,000 residents a year, against 61.3 across North Carolina.
What is the best way to plan truck routes in Lake Waccamaw?
Paste your stops into the free CurbWaste Route Planner: it scores your route against fatal-crash locations, suggests safer alternatives and flags low bridges.
2026 is a partial year. Updated October 2026.