Police Investigate Hit-and-Run In Murray Construction Zone
Aug 11, 2019, 12:25 AM | Updated: 12:33 am
MURRAY, Utah – Many Utah roadways are under construction this summer creating traffic headaches for drivers. It can also create a dangerous environment for road construction workers.
A road construction worker has spoken out after surviving a hit-and-run incident involving an aggressive driver in Salt Lake County.
“I get yelled at all the time,” said Mitchell Johnson. “People yell at us, scream at us, (and) give us the finger.”
It’s something that Johnson said has become commonplace treatment by drivers who pass through the road construction sites where he works.
“It’s constantly, every day and it’s funny because it’s the entire age group,” said Johnson. “It doesn’t matter what age you are, from teenagers to the elderly, they just complain.”
According to Johnson, things escalated to a new level last Monday in Murray. A disgruntled driver who was told she couldn’t make a left turn in the area of 1300 East and Van Winkle turned the wheel on Johnson.
“She was just mad, road rage, I don’t know if she had a bad day, I have no idea,” expressed Johnson.
According to Johnson, “she did a hard U-turn, came across both her lanes, over the median, through two lanes that were blocked off with big orange barrels, 3 feet tall or so, and hit me – and then continued on and ran.”
Johnson was hit with the driver’s side of her vehicle. He said the vehicle was a newer model, tan, mid-sized SUV that may now be missing the mirror on the driver’s side.
“This woman, I feel like she tried to kill me,” Johnson said.
The driver was still on the run. Officials with the Murray Police Department confirmed receiving a report of the incident but said they did not recover video surveillance from the traffic cameras.
Mitchell said he suffered a concussion and was waiting to have an orthopedic doctor assess the injury to his shoulder. As for drivers who may be tempted to lose their cool, he has this message:
“Slow down. I guess that’s the only lesson to be learned you know. Slow down, pay attention. In a work zone it absolutely needs to happen because someone is going to lose their life,” Johnson said.
Anyone with information about the vehicle or driver involved in the incident have been asked to contact the Murray Police Department.