ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. – A pregnant MoDOT employee could have survived a November 2021 work zone crash if a protective truck experienced been used. It’s a protection measure not expected in get the job done zones wherever the pace restrict is decreased than 45.
Kaitlyn Anderson died with her baby, alongside with an additional MoDOT employee, in a do the job zone wherever the speed limit was 40. The state is standing by its security determination that made available no safety.
Anderson would have turned 26 on March 28. Her child, Jaxx, was due the subsequent working day. She lived with her aunt, Tabitha Moore, who explained to us how great life was prior to the deadly crash.
“We used to joke with her that she was heading to rub a gap as a result of her belly prior to Jaxx acquired here due to the fact she would spend so a lot time rubbing her big ol’ infant bump,” Moore said.
Kaitlyn and her baby equally died in the work zone crash previous November on Telegraph Road around Interstate 255. A second employee also died. A 3rd hardly survived. Moore is demanding modifications from MoDOT.
“You did not give them the good machines. You did not have the good methods in location. Now we have missing 3,” she stated. “Kaitlyn’s long gone. Jaxx is gone. James Brooks is gone. They can by no means occur back again, and we do not want to see this happen to one more spouse and children.”
Moore argues that MoDOT should’ve done more than put out warning cones. She explained it should’ve used a protective truck.
The MoDOT employee who survived that November working day, Michael Brown, shared pics of protective vehicles, also named TMAs, at other do the job zones.
MoDOT only needs them if the velocity limit is 45 and in excess of. The speed limit at the crash scene on Telegraph was 40.
Moore reported her niece Kaitlyn utilised to drive a protective truck as her job and that Kaitlyn had requested to change assignments just after having strike three periods when expecting.
“She stated ‘I’ve been hit a large amount, so numerous periods, it is really producing me anxious. Currently being pregnant I’d like to have a safer position,’” Moore mentioned her niece informed supervisors, including, “The safer career they gave her was striping, portray the road on Telegraph with no buffer truck.”
MoDOT declined to talk on camera with FOX 2 and would not response certain questions. We questioned about operate zone security. As a substitute, a spokesman explained MoDOT is adhering to countrywide pointers.
Moore guarantees this is not the very last you’ll listen to from her.
“The condition – you need to be held to a bigger conventional,” she reported. “You must be boosting the bar to each individual other company out there and that’s the base line. They should really have been protected.”
Tabatha Moore not too long ago wrote this open letter to MoDOT, from the point of view of her deceased niece and her child.