JACKSON, Miss. ( WJTV ) – The Mississippi Department of Transportation (MDOT) honored highway workers who have been killed on the job.
On Tuesday, MDOT hosted an annual memorial ceremony in Jackson to mark National Work Zone Awareness Week .
MDOT encourages safety during Work Zone Awareness Week
Family, friends and MDOT employees showed support as many continue to grieve the loss of their loved ones. Many people wore orange ribbons to signify the importance of this week. The names of those killed on the job echoed outside the MDOT building as they were called out one by one.
“His grandfather’s name is Leon Sims, and he was working one Monday, January 11, 2010, and they was putting the stuff over the road for black ice when someone came by and unexpectedly hit him. We got a call saying that he was hit, you know, and I’m expecting to go to the hospital, whatever, to see him. But then we didn’t know what to expect. I just really miss him,” said Emma Sims, whose brother was killed while working.