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@wsdot This day is always a hard day. Today, we honored 61 colleagues killed in work zones since 1950. Today, 61 members of our honor guard stood vigil as the families of fallen WSDOT employees gathered to celebrate, mourn, and remember. Survivors also shared their stories. Maintenance worker Josh Quilici spoke of how a semi-truck struck his plow on I-90 near Kittitas in January — the impact flipped the plow. “My thoughts quickly went to my family,” Josh said. “I asked myself if I would be ok, if I would make it home to my wife and kids.” With the help of people who stopped to help, Josh crawled out of the passenger side of his overturned plow. He returned to work a few weeks later, but he’s still dealing with lingering pain from the impact. Maintenance worker Dave Hays stood in front of a ruined truck-mounted attenuator — folded like an accordion — as he described how a distracted driver smashed into his vehicle while Dave was providing traffic control for an earlier fatal collision on I-5 in Clark County. Dave was hospitalized and has since returned to work. Their stories are scary but, sadly, not uncommon. Last year, we asked several dozen members of our crews to raise their hands if they had ever experienced a near-miss (close call) situation. Every single hand went up. These crews work inches away from speeding vehicles in order to make our state highways and bridges safer and more reliable. Like you, they want to go home each day to their family, friends, pets, hobbies, and dreams. Today is a heavy day. But, with your help, we can avoid ever having to add another cone to our memorial wall. Please help protect the people who keep us moving. Slow down in work zones, put down the phones, and pay attention. It could be a matter of life and death.🧡
