Most who work in the construction industry understand that it can be a dangerous line of employment. However, few of these workers expect to suffer injury or death from a private motorist. Unfortunately, these kinds of construction accidents injure and kill many Ohio workers employed in this industry each year.
A recent incident occurring in Brook Park, a suburb of Cleveland, led to the death of a 61-year-old construction worker. An additional worker suffered injuries in the vehicle-related construction accident.
According to a news report, the construction team was painting fresh stripes at night on I-71 South when the accident occurred. A private motorist crashed into the group of workers, striking the two victims, before continuing to drive away.
An uninjured worker followed the motorist to a shopping center and called the authorities. The police took the motorist into custody but had not filed any charges at the time of the news report. The police chief for the Brook Park Police Department said that detectives will investigate the crash to determine if alcohol, drugs or distraction played a role in the crash.
Sadly, this is the second fatality this year involving a road re-striping worker. In March, another worker died in a similar scenario. It is worth noting that construction workers in Ohio wear reflective safety gear and work in well-marked areas to improve safety. However, when a motorist is reckless or even negligent, fatal crashes like this one still occur.
Although these topics are unpleasant to contemplate, workers should be aware of the risks. When construction accidents do cause injury or death, victims and their surviving family members can avoid financial hardships by filing a workers’ compensation claim. An experienced attorney can fill a valuable role in helping victims file a successful claim.