Highway flagger struck, killed in Klamath County

A road construction flagger was struck and killed Tuesday night on state Highway 140 East in Klamath County, Oregon State Police reported.

OSP troopers and emergency personnel responded around 8:30 p.m. to the report of a pedestrian hit by a vehicle near milepost 8 on the highway, troopers said,

A preliminary investigation found that a gold Mazda Protege driven by Zahara Gonzales, 38, of Klamath Falls, was heading west and entered an active construction zone when she struck a flagger identified as Daniel Wessel , 45, also of Klamath Falls, and the car ended up in a ditch along the road.

Wessel , a worker for Rocky Mountain Construction of Klamath Falls, died at the scene of the crash, which closed Highway 140E for four hours.

Troopers said no charges have been filed against Gonzales at this time as the investigation continues. No other vehicles were involved and no one else was injured, OSP Captain Tim Fox said.

OSP was assisted at the scene by ODOT, the Klamath County Sheriff’s Office and the Klamath County Fire District No. 1.