Two months into 2024, seven people have died in three wrong-way crashes on Connecticut highways, data shows.

The numbers include a fatal crash that occurred early Sunday, when Connecticut State Police say a wrong-way driver in a pickup truck slammed into two other cars on Interstate 95 in West Haven. The collision killed the driver of the pickup, as well as all three occupants of the first car struck by the wrong-way driver. Two people in the third car involved in the crash were hospitalized with serious injuries, state police said.

The issue hit home for Connecticut lawmakers last year when state Rep. Quentin "Q" Williams was struck by a wrong-way driver while heading home from the governor's inaugural ball. Williams died in the crash along with the wrong-way driver, 27-year-old Manchester resident Kimede Mustafaj.

Officials say the collisions are often fatal, because the combined speeds when drivers collide head-on are usually well over 100 mph. Officials say they typically occur after dark and involve wrong-way drivers who are intoxicated.

Williams' death came just days into 2023, after a year that saw wrong-way crash fatalities balloon. In 2022, 23 people were killed in 13 wrong-way crashes, according to statistics provided by the state Department of Transportation. In 2021, there were four fatalities and four crashes, the agency said.

Last year, saw seven fatalities and five wrong-way crashes.

In response, the DOT has begun upgrading exit ramps to alert drivers if they start heading the wrong way, and to notify state police to intercept them.

The off-ramps with the upgraded alert system have two "detection" zones, according to Josh Morgan, a spokesperson for the DOT. When the driver passes through the first "an invisible barrier is broken," he said, and the system activates red flashing LED lights around the red and white wrong-way signs. If the vehicle doesn't stop, "there'll be a notification sent to the DOT Highway Operation Center," where staff will try to locate it on traffic cameras, Morgan said.

At the same time, state police also receive the notification and can "dispatch the nearest trooper to try to intercept the vehicle," he added.

The state has 27 of the wrong-way detection systems online, Morgan said Monday. By the end of this year, the agency aims to have 100 in operation, with 236 in total over the next few years.

"We're continuing to make progress, work as quickly as we can to put this technology on the ramps that we've identified as being high-risk," Morgan said.

"Ultimately, we know where these crashes happen, but we never really know where that wrong-way driver gets on to the highway, because it's very unlikely that they're going to survive a wrong-way crash," he added.

Locations the DOT identified as high-risk for drivers getting on the wrong way include off-ramps near bars and other places that serve alcohol, Morgan said.

"There are 236 ramps that we've said are high-risk, but there's hundreds and hundreds of ramps across Connecticut," Morgan added, noting that likely not every ramp would have the technology.

"We continue to stress the importance to drivers to make sure that they're paying attention, that they're looking for the signs, even if the ramp does not have the flashing lights," he said. And while he stressed that it wasn't reflective of the crash in West Haven, which remains under investigation, he added that "the data is telling us that virtually all wrong-way drivers are impaired by alcohol."

For drivers who are out late at at night when wrong-way crashes often occur, Morgan suggested staying in the right lane of the highway. Wrong-way drivers will often start driving in the left lane, believing it's the right lane. If you see a wrong-way driver, pull over and call 911 immediately, he said.

For drivers who inadvertently get on the highway going the wrong way, Morgan noted that even if they pass the wrong-way signs on the exit ramp, the back side of speed limit signs are also marked "wrong-way." If that happens, stop and pull over to turn around and call 911, he said.

"The biggest thing that drivers can do is make sure that they're paying attention, make sure that they're slowing down (and) make sure that they're sober before they get behind the wheel," he added.