Friday, February 13, 2004
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

Landscaper killed in roadside crash; police investigate

Authorities try to determine if motorist or landscaping crew is to blame in accident

A motorist struck and killed a landscaper Thursday after the landscaping crew closed down a lane of traffic without authorization. Las Vegas police were investigating who was at fault.

"This is one of the frequent problems we have," said Bobby Shelton, spokesman for the Clark County Public Works Department. "People go down and close down lanes arbitrarily because in their minds they are going to be there for only a few minutes. But, those few minutes could be deadly."

A landscaping crew at 8:16 a.m. was working in the right lane of southbound Buffalo Drive north of Smoke Ranch Road when a 2001 Chrysler PT Cruiser operated by Las Vegas resident Donna Rohr hit two of the workers, Detective Dennis Magill said.

Rohr, 45, was in the right lane behind a slower-moving vehicle. She moved into the center lane, and lost control of her car as she swerved back into the right lane before crashing into the landscaping crew.

The first landscaper struck suffered injuries after being knocked to the side of the road.

The second worker was pronounced dead at University Medical Center after being struck head-on, landing on the car's windshield and being dragged about 100 feet down the street, police said.

Authorities didn't release the identity of the worker who died pending notification of family. The injured worker, Alfredo Godinez, 21, was treated at the hospital and released Thursday, a hospital representative said.

Evidence at the scene indicated Rohr's Chrysler struck the curb before hitting the workers. No action was taken against Rohr because investigators hadn't determined how fast she was driving in the 45 mph zone, or who was responsible for the accident, Magill said.

The landscaping crew may have been at fault since it was working in the right lane without a permit from the city of Las Vegas.

The crew had a permit to work in another part of the city Thursday, but didn't have authorization to close down that section of Buffalo, Magill said.

Road-safety authorities for the city of Las Vegas couldn't be reached for comment late Thursday.

Shelton, from the county Public Works Department, said the county requires utility companies, landscapers, bus stop maintenance crews and others to get authorization before closing down lanes of traffic.

However, he said, on a nearly daily basis someone in the Las Vegas Valley will close down a lane of traffic without permission.

"Normally, you would need to have advanced warning signs, and you would have tapered cones that would move traffic to the open lane," he said.