N.C. DOT worker dies in trailer truck crash
By Catharin Shepard
Published in News on June 3, 2010 1:46 PM
WARSAW -- A state Department of Transportation worker was killed Wednesday and two others were injured in an accident on Interstate 40 in Duplin County.
Jonathan King, 21, of Autryville was struck and killed by a tractor-trailer truck while setting up a work zone on the interstate.
King, an employee with the Sampson County bridge department, was standing outside a DOT vehicle when he was struck, Duplin County Emergency Management Services Director Brian Pearce said.
King and DOT employee Bradley Williams, also of Autryville, were preparing the site for bridge construction at the time of the accident. The accident took place around 7 a.m. near mile marker 365 close to the town of Warsaw.
Truck driver Ernest Harris, who sustained minor injuries in the accident, was charged with misdemeanor death by motor vehicle, failure to maintain lane control, failure to reduce speed and reckless driving. Distracted driving is believed to be a factor in the accident, officials said.
Williams and Harris were transported to Sampson Regional Medical Center for treatment of minor injuries and were later released, Pearce said.
The accident closed part of I-40 while emergency workers responded and towers cleared the scene.
King had been with the DOT for three years, according to a DOT spokesperson. DOT employees are required to undergo safety and orientation training.
Duplin County EMS and fire departments from Warsaw and Faison responded to the call. The North Carolina Highway Patrol is handling the investigation.