DENVER — Colorado Gov. Jared Polis ordered flags to fly at half-staff Monday in remembrance of two Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) workers who were killed in a crash.
Trent Umberger, 43, and Nathan Jones, 23, both of Grand Junction, died on Wednesday. They were fixing a road sign on the side of U.S. 6 between Palisade and Grand Junction when the driver of a Jeep hit them. The Jeep then hit their parked CDOT vehicle and rolled. A passenger in the Jeep, Kathi Wallace, 67, also died in the crash.
The only person involved who survived the crash was the driver, who was taken to the hospital with minor injuries and later released.
Polis ordered flags to be flown at half-staff from sunrise to sunset on Monday.
“My heart goes out to the families of Trent Umberger and Nathan Jones, two dedicated maintainers with the Colorado Department of Transportation, as well as passenger Kathi Wallace, who lost their lives [Wednesday]," Polis said in a statement. "This is a terrible tragedy, and while words won’t relieve the pain of this moment for their loved ones, know that the state of Colorado mourns alongside them. To recognize this tragedy and loss, I will be lowering flags to honor their lives and service."
Jones was hired as a CDOT maintenance apprentice in December 2022. He was on track to complete the apprenticeship in December and would have been one of the first to complete it.
Umberger had worked as a transportation maintenance profession with CDOT since March 2017.
The Colorado State Patrol said the CDOT vehicle was parked off the road, to the right side of the fog line. They said they are investigating what caused this crash but confirmed the driver was not in the lane they were supposed to be in. Impairment is not suspected at this time.
