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Worker killed removing storm debris on NC 12 identified

Posted at 10:05 AM, Nov 11, 2012
and last updated 2012-11-11 15:12:07-05

RALEIGH – The four-wheeled drive only access area of N.C. 12 has re-opened for daylight travel only, following an early morning accident that killed one North Carolina Department of Transportation employee.

37-year-old Michael Brad Stevenson was killed in the early morning accident, which occurred just south of the Oregon Inlet, on a section of N.C. 12 being repaired after Hurricane Sandy and the recent Nor’easter.

NCDOT says the road will be closed to traffic at sundown. The area is remote, and current road conditions are more challenging to navigate at night.

Photos: Damage along NC 12 in Dare County

NCDOT is currently working with local officials to develop options for traveling along this stretch of N.C. 12 that will provide additional travel times. 

The emergency four-wheel drive access route was re-opened to residents and visitors for the first time since the storm Saturday afternoon. It offers one lane in each direction, except at the temporary bridge and the Bonner Bridge, where it narrows to a single lane for vehicles traveling in both directions

“Our thoughts and prayers go out to the Stevenson family during this extremely difficult time,” said NCDOT Secretary Gene Conti. “The men and women who work to keep N.C. 12, and all of our highways, safe and open for travel are special people. When something like this happens, it hits all of us in the DOT family hard.”

Stevenson, a resident of Hertford, N.C., was a transportation worker in Pasquotank County and had worked for NCDOT for approximately 15 years. He is survived by his wife and their three children.

“Brad had worked for the department for over 15 years, “ said Jerry Jennings, Division 1 Engineer. “He was excellent equipment operator and a very loyal and dedicated employee – the kind of person everyone liked to work with.”

The accident took place in the early morning hours and involved Stevenson and one other NCDOT employee who was injured. Both were operating dump trucks. The State Highway Patrol is currently investigating.

NCDOT’s ferries are providing access to areas affected by the storms and their impacts in N.C. 12. For more information visit www.ncdot.gov/ferry/ or call 1-800-293-3779.