A distracted driver hit a flagger with the Department of Transportation Maintenance and Operations on Thursday on the Kenai Peninsula.
The flagger is expected to make a full recovery and Shannon McCarthy with the DOT says she’s thankful that the accident wasn’t worse.
DOT McCarthy: “We were doing some work in the ditch and we had warning signs in advance, our flagger had high visibility clothing on from head to toe, you know helmet, jacket, pants, gloves. And they were holding a stop paddle. A driver approached at a high rate of speed and struck the flagger.”
McCarthy declined to identify where exactly on the Kenai Peninsula the accident happened.
She said she identified the Kenai Peninsula as the area of the incident because there is so much road work going on in the area.
DOT McCarthy: “We’ve got a lot of folks who are working and their workplace is the right of way, in the road. And we’re just asking motorists to be especially careful, to pay attention, avoid those distractions, put your phones away so that you’re not even tempted to reach for them, you know both hands on the wheel, eyes on the road.”
The flagger’s injuries were not fully disclosed to McCarthy but she said the flagger was treated at a hospital and released soon after the accident.
