Tragic day in Colorado’: 3 killed including 2 CDOT workers in highway crash, victims identified

PALISADE, Colo. (KKTV) – State officials say they are heartbroken after two roadside workers were killed Wednesday while on the job.

CDOT transportation maintenance professionals Trent Umberger and Nathan Jones were both killed. Umberger began working for CDOT in 2017. Colorado State Patrol said he also supported Vail Pass patrol on I-70 during the winter time. Jones began working in 2022. he was part of CDOT’s maintenance apprenticeship program and was scheduled to be one of the first to complete the program in Dec. 2024.

“Our team is absolutely devastated to be here today,” said CDOT Executive Director Shoshana Lew in a news conference addressing the tragedy.

The two Colorado Department of Transportation employees were doing maintenance operations on Highway 6 near milepost 40 just east of Grand Junction when State Patrol says an oncoming Jeep drifted off the road.

“The two CDOT workers that were at the scene were walking back towards their truck, we believe, when that Jeep Grand Cherokee collided with both them and that CDOT truck that was parked on that scene,” said Col. Matthew Packard, chief of Colorado State Patrol.

Both workers were killed, and the force of impact caused the Jeep to roll, killing the passenger.

In an update on Friday, Colorado State Patrol said the two CDOT employees’ truck was completely off of the road and their lights and sign board was activated. The employees were standing behind the truck with their vests on when they were hit.

“I can’t say this enough that today is a tragic day in Colorado,” Packard said.

Packard and Lew both stressed how preventable the horrific events were.

“The folks that are out there working on the road, that is their office and they’re out there protecting the traveling public,” Lew said. “When you see vehicles pulled over on the side of the road, please, please treat them like they’re your own family. Drive slowly, move over and make it safe for them to be doing the work they do each and every day to keep the rest of us safe.”

“Three people lost their lives. And anytime that happens, it’s heartbreaking and tragic. And today is no exception to that. My heart goes out to our friends at CDOT who every day our troopers work side by side,” Packard said. “… And of course, the driver of [the Jeep] lost his loved one today.”

The passenger in the Jeep, Kathi Ann Wallace from Grand Junction, was the driver’s wife, according to Colorado State Patrol.

The driver sustained minor injuries and could ultimately face criminal charges.

“There’s still a lot to go through and we will work closely with the Mesa County District Attorney’s Office,” Packard said.

Over the last few decades, Colorado has experienced an increasing number of deaths, injuries and near-misses to state law enforcement, road crews, stalled drivers, and others parked along the side the road. In response, the state passed a “Move Over” law several years ago, which it strengthened last year. The original version of the law required drivers to move over, or if not possible, slow way down when passing first responders on the side of the road; the current version signed into law by Gov. Jared Polis in 2023 expands that to cover all vehicles.

PALISADE, Colo. (KKTV) – State officials say they are heartbroken after two roadside workers were killed Wednesday while on the job.

CDOT transportation maintenance professionals Trent Umberger and Nathan Jones were both killed. Umberger began working for CDOT in 2017. Colorado State Patrol said he also supported Vail Pass patrol on I-70 during the winter time. Jones began working in 2022. he was part of CDOT’s maintenance apprenticeship program and was scheduled to be one of the first to complete the program in Dec. 2024.

“Our team is absolutely devastated to be here today,” said CDOT Executive Director Shoshana Lew in a news conference addressing the tragedy.

The two Colorado Department of Transportation employees were doing maintenance operations on Highway 6 near milepost 40 just east of Grand Junction when State Patrol says an oncoming Jeep drifted off the road.

“The two CDOT workers that were at the scene were walking back towards their truck, we believe, when that Jeep Grand Cherokee collided with both them and that CDOT truck that was parked on that scene,” said Col. Matthew Packard, chief of Colorado State Patrol.