Seeing the aftermath of a serious accident is disturbing, and in recent weeks, photographs of two serious traffic accidents have appeared on the front page of the Butler Eagle. One accident, involving a motorcyclist on Route 8, was a fatality.

As always, the newspaper staff is careful to avoid showing a body or more gruesome aspects of an accident scene. Still, looking at a photograph with the knowledge that a person was seriously injured or killed is unsettling. But it is news. It should also be a reminder that driving is dangerous, and that exercising caution can save a life.

Too often, most drivers are operating on autopilot, cruising along the highway as if nothing can go wrong. Most drivers today multitask: talking on the cell phone, changing radio stations, searching for a CD, or tending to a child in the back seat.

But it is useful to be reminded that just a few seconds of inattention at the wrong time can have fatal consequences. In some cases, an accident is unavoidable, but in most cases some extra care, caution and patience can make a difference.

Lives can be saved by resisting the urge to pass on a winding, two-lane highway or waiting for a longer gap between cars before pulling out into highway traffic. Some drivers also double-check to be sure oncoming traffic has stopped before responding to a green light and pulling into an intersection.

But, in normal, day-to-day driving, few drivers give this more cautious, conservative approach much thought. After seeing an accident scene or a photograph in the newspaper, however, some drivers might think to be more careful.

Most drivers do tend to slow down and drive more carefully, at least for a while, after passing by the scene of an accident. They might even exercise a bit more caution while passing by the scene of the accident for days or weeks to come.

Images of serious accidents remind us not only of the danger of driving in general or certain intersections, but they also are a reminder of our own mortality. Disturbing scenes of traffic accidents reveal how quickly tragedy can strike anyone at any time.

It is impossible to eliminate risk while driving, but taking extra care and caution, while also avoiding aggressive driving, can make a difference.

The photographs of the accidents that some readers objected to seeing on the front page were unsettling. This newspaper and its photographers will continue take care to avoid photographs that are overly graphic. But photographs of a scene where a death occurred are disturbing, whether they occur on Route 8, Interstate 79, a burned out house, a bombing in Iraq or genocide in Africa. But scenes of death, unfortunately, are part of life - and part of the essential job of the news media.

We hope there will be few, if any, more fatal accidents that occur in Butler County. But if they do happen, we will cover them as professionally and tastefully as possible.

Reporting the good and the bad in the community is part of the responsibility of the media. Unfortunately, that includes covering fatal accidents too.