June 28, 2024
By Lane Kimble
PEWAUKEE, Wis. — A construction worker died and another was hurt when a truck crashed through their work zone in Pewaukee this week.
The crash also killed a 76-year-old woman.
It happened Wednesday around 9:30 a.m. along Capitol Drive near Pewaukee Road (Highway 164). The Waukesha County Sheriff’s Office says a 49-year-old man driving a pickup truck smashed into the back of the woman’s car, then continued into the construction zone where he hit the two workers.
A 46-year-old construction worker was taken to the hospital where he died. A 47-year-old worker who was hit will survive.
“You’re spending a third of your day, if not better, with these individuals, with these men and women and they become your family. It’s devastating to the crews, it’s devastating to the companies,” Milwaukee Building and Construction Trades Council President Dan Bukiewicz told FOX 6 News.
Prior to Wednesday’s crash, there had been 789 work zone crashes which caused 252 injuries and one death in 2024, according to Wisconsin Traffic Operations and Safety Laboratory data tracked by UW-Madison.
“(Our members) see people on their phones, they see people not paying attention, not slowing down when there are warning signs telling you to do so, so that’s really frustrating for them,” WTBA Director of Communications Lane Kimble told WISN-TV. “There’s only so much we can control. We realize we, as contractors, have a role to play here and we do that. We need you (drivers) to do your part as well.”
Thursday, prosecutors charged the truck driver with seven felonies related to the crash. Court documents show Jade Moen had a suspended license, having surrendered his driving privileges after a crash in 2021. Moen told the court he has epilepsy and “blacked out” before Wednesday’s deadly crash.
A Waukesha County court commissioner ordered Moen held on $1 million cash bail, noting Moen had no business being behind the wheel.
WTBA extends its deepest sympathies to the families, friends, and crew members of the people involved in this tragedy.
