OTA worker killed, another injured in crash involving semi on Will Rogers Turnpike

An Oklahoma Turnpike Authority worker was hit and killed on Will Rogers Turnpike near Miami on Monday.

29-year-old Zac Rinehart was a husband and father and a volunteer firefighter.

Troopers say Rinehart was killed when the driver of a semi veered off the road and into a work zone.

Troopers say the semi driver dropped a device inside his cab and was trying to pick it up when he veered off the road.

The truck hit and killed Rinehart, who was outside collecting debris.

The semi then crashed into a parked OTA vehicle with another worker inside. That worker was critically injured and flown to a hospital in Joplin, Missouri.

Troopers say the truck driver was not hurt and is cooperating with the investigation.

OHP plans to submit findings for possible charges once the case is complete.

They say crashes like this shouldn’t happen.

“It’s just an avoidable tragedy, said OHP Lieutenant Mark Southall. I mean, it just didn’t need to happen. There was nothing going on in front of that driver other than him taking his attention off the roadway, departing the roadway and striking two hard-working men.”

The Oklahoma Turnpike Authority says Rinehart worked on the Will Rogers Turnpike maintenance crew for the past two years.

They released a statement saying in part: “This loss is felt by each of his co-workers statewide and OTA extends its deepest sympathy to the Rinehart family.”

The Vinita Fire Department, where Rinehart volunteered, posted a message on Facebook saying he ‘answered the call to protect and serve his neighbors without hesitation’ and the community lost a ‘true servant’.

OHP originally reported to News On 6 that the crash involved ODOT workers. This story has been corrected to reflect that OTA workers were involved.