Semi, vehicle collision on I-70 endangers MoDOT workers

One worker watched the crash from eight feet away, but no one was hurt.

By Katherine Miller

Published Feb. 27, 2009

A Ford Mustang and a semi truck collided in a work zone on Interstate 70 early Thursday morning.

Dwayne McGinnis, 21, hit the semi almost head-on while driving eastbound in the westbound lanes of I-70 at the Business Loop 70 West overpass. McGinnis had been drinking, police said.

The driver of the semi, Curtis Ekstrom, 46, of Independence, attempted to avoid the oncoming car but was unable to because five Missouri Department of Transportation construction workers were in the area, attempting to repair the overpass, according to the news release.

"The semi driver did some pretty remarkable driving by not hitting the Mustang head-on," said CPD Sgt. John Gordon, who was dispatched to the scene. "He also wasn't going to place the lives of the MoDOT workers in jeopardy, so he did the best he could."

Gordon said the closest worker was only about eight feet away from the crash.

"You have to remember, a standard lane on a highway is roughly 12 feet," Gordon said. "You can imagine if they're crashing in the lane next to you, and you're standing right there on the striped line, you're not that far away from it."

Gordon said the construction was taking place at night since traffic tends to be lighter, typically making it safer for workers.

No one was hurt in the crash, and all of the parties involved refused medical attention. McGinnis, his passenger Matthew Cox, 26, and Ekstrom were all wearing seatbelts, the news release stated.

Gordon said the red 2005 Mustang was damaged on the driver's side and front-end. None of the cargo in the semi was damaged.

CPD Capt. Stephen Monticelli said McGinnis was arrested after he failed both a field sobriety test and Breathalyzer test administered at the police station.

McGinnis was arrested for five counts of second-degree assault, a charge that includes operating an automobile while intoxicated and putting somebody in danger of physical injury or death, Gordon said.

Monticelli said the driver was arrested for a higher penalty than just driving while intoxicated because of the nearby workers.

"If it wasn't a construction zone and there weren't people standing out there on highway in a marked zone, they would not have charged him unless somebody was injured in the accident," Monticelli said.

MoDOT traffic safety engineer John Miller said the department has reported 1,696 crashes in work zones for 2008.

Sixty-five of those 1,696 crashes involved drunk driving.

Miller said alcohol was not in the top five most common contributing circumstances of work zone crashes in 2008, which did include inattention and following cars too closely. But, he said alcohol-involved crashes continue to be a major concern.

MoDOT works with law enforcement to ensure work zones are as safe as possible. Miller said although MoDOT does their best to try to combat work zone crashes by making sure zones are maintained, set up correctly and everything is visible, some things are beyond their control.

"One of the things we can't figure out is why a person is driving the wrong way on an interstate," Miller said.

Gordon said because of the location and severity of the crash, it was surprising no one was injured.

"We were extremely fortunate that the driver of the suspect vehicle, the passenger of the suspect vehicle, were not killed along with the five Missouri Department of Transportation workers who were just out there doing their job," Gordon said.