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Dive brief:
- Two speeding drivers likely caused March 2023 crash on I-695 near Baltimore which killed six construction workersaccording to a National Transportation Safety Board report released earlier this month.
- The drivers were traveling about 120 mph when they collided, sending a car into a freeway work zone, where it hit and killed six workers. The report listed excessive speed by both vehicles and unsafe lane changes by one driver as probable causes of the crash.
- Although one of the cars went through an opening in the work zone’s concrete barriers, the report found that the road builder, Gaithersburg, Md.-based Concrete General Inc., had conducted daily assessments of safety and found no significant problems in the days leading up to the accident. .
Diving knowledge:
The narrow work zone on the freeway’s left shoulder required coordination of work zones, the report said, and workers were working in their assigned areas at the time of the accident.
In addition to daily security assessments, the report said:
- The foremen had a daily pre-work briefing with the crews.
- The project superintendent inspected the site daily and held regular meetings with the Maryland State Highway Administration project engineer to discuss work activities.
- Daily maintenance of traffic inspections was performed by the contractor and MDSHA staff.
- Quality assurance inspectors from the MDSHA district office visited the site weekly.
The NTSB report also noted the lack of a closed shoulder sign and a “Trucks Entering Freeway” sign. The contractor stated that a vehicle had knocked down the “Shoulder Closed” sign and it was scheduled to be replaced. Crews put up portable signs to indicate when trucks would come and go, as opposed to a permanent sign.
In addition, an attenuator protection vehicle mounted on a truck was parked behind the barrier opening, not blocking it. MDSHA and the contractor said the vehicle was used when the project required lane closures, according to the report, released Oct. 9. NTSB said the truck was operated in a manner consistent with guidelines.
Finally, there were no speed cameras near the workplace at the time of the collapse. Maryland law allows the use of automated speed cameras in work zones. MDSHA uses a number of factors to determine camera placement, and prior to the accident, the work zone had not been identified as having a prevalence of speeding.
The NTSB has recommended that states and local authorities adopt the use of automatic speed cameras in work zones to improve safety. After the accident, Maryland updated its laws to include higher fines and to allow cameras without human operators in work zones. MDSHA also implemented changes to work zone procedures, including more lane closures, protective vehicles and variable speed zones when workers are present.
Court cases
On October 10, the family of Sybil DiMaggio, one of the workers who diedfiled suit against Concrete General, the state of Maryland and the two motorists. The lawsuit alleges that the contractor failed to “ensure a safe construction zone for those working on the project,” the Baltimore Banner reported.
It claims the closed shoulder sign was not reinstalled and the truck was parked in a location that did not protect workers from the 120-foot opening between barriers.
However, the NTSB report indicates that these factors were not abnormal.
Concrete General did not respond to Construction Dive’s request for comment at the time of the lawsuit, and MDSHA said in a statement shared with The Baltimore Sun that the signs would not have prevented the crash, a claim apparently supported by the NTSB’s findings.
As for the drivers, Melachi Brown pleaded guilty to six counts of negligent homicide and was sentenced to 18 months in prison. The trial of Lisa Lea, whose vehicle entered the work zone, is scheduled for April 2025.
Lea’s attorney did not respond to Construction Dive’s request for comment on the lawsuit, and Brown’s attorney could not be reached for comment at the time of the family’s lawsuit.
DiMaggio, an employee of Sparks, Md., construction and consulting firm KCI Technologies Inc., was working on materials testing at the job site when she was killed.
