Victim Of Deer Crash On PA Turnpike Identified As Ambler Man

LOWER MORELAND, PA — The driver in a fatal crash on the Pennsylvania Turnpike in Montgomery County Monday night has been identified by state police as an Ambler resident.

Ronald Knopman, 58, was headed east in Lower Moreland in his Ford Mustang at around 7 p.m. when he hit a deer.

The incident occurred in Lower Moreland near mile marker 345.9, the Turnpike said.

The eastbound lanes of the road were shut down for several hours, but were reopened by 10 p.m.

It's the latest tragedy in a brutal year for deer-related crashes and vehicle deaths. A Malvern Prep student was also killed last month after striking a deer in Chester County.

Related: 1 Dead After Driver Hits Deer On PA Turnpike In Montgomery Co.

The deer population in eastern Pennsylvania is roughly 10 times what the region's forests are built to handle, according to wildlife biologists and environmental experts. Due to the plummeting local numbers or outright regional extinction of large carnivores that hunt deer like wolves, bears, and mountain lions, deer have proliferated far beyond their natural habitat.

Fall is breeding season for white-tailed, meaning they're on the move and more likely to cross roads and come into contact with vehicles. As the season wears on and it gets darker earlier, the local area offer plenty of dimly lit, windy, sloping country roads that not only offer perfect deer habitat in the woods and fields on either side of the road, but provide the perfect storm of conditions to impair judgement.

Dusk and dawn are when most deer collisions occur, according to State Farm.