Quick thinking allowed a veteran Virginia State Police trooper to push a highway worker to safety before he and another worker were hit by an out-of-control pickup truck in a construction zone accident yesterday. The three men were conferring on the side of the road when the speeding truck jumped the curb and plowed into the group. The trooper was treated for minor injuries and released; but the injured worker was flown to a medical center for treatment of life-threatening injuries. The 20-year-old driver of the pickup truck was charged with reckless driving with possible additional charges pending.

In Nevada, another highway worker was gravely injured in a construction zone accident yesterday. While walking along the berm performing highway maintenance duties, the worker was struck by an overturning SUV. Just seconds earlier the SUV had been hit by a second vehicle whose 88-year-0ld driver was attempting to turn left onto the highway. Occupants of both vehicles suffered only minor injuries, but the highway worker was airlifted to the hospital with critical injuries. The accident is under investigation.

Yesterday’s construction zone accidents did not occur in St. Louis, but they could have. With fall’s arrival, St. Louis motorists can expect to see more orange cones on roadways as construction workers rush to finish highway projects before winter. Every year more than 40,000 injuries and 700 fatalities result from construction zone accidents.

If you are injured in a construction zone accident, contact the St. Louis workers’ compensation attorneys at Hoffman & Gelfman.