Date:  Tuesday, February 19, 2008

Contact: Mike Cotten, WSDOT Project Director, (425) 405-1787 (Everett), cell (206) 200-7689
Sgt. Jerry Strieck, Public Information Officer, Everett Police, (425) 257-8486

EVERETT – The Snohomish County Medical Examiner’s Office has determined that head injuries caused the death of a 61-year old man found last Thursday under Interstate 5 in Everett near 36th Street. Crews working for WSDOT contractor Atkinson-CH2M Hill had been using a manlift in the area near the BNSF railroad and 36th Street.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with the friends and family of this gentleman,” said WSDOT Transportation Secretary Paula Hammond. “We’ve been working for more than six months on guidelines to address issues involving homeless people in state construction zones and on state right-of-way. We’ve made some progress, but we have more work to do.”

WSDOT appreciates the assistance provided in the past few days by the Everett Police Department and the Snohomish County Medical Examiner’s Office.

WSDOT has been working on guidelines to address homeless issues. They include:

• on-going informal conversations with homeless advocacy groups as we develop the guidelines
• coordinating with the city of Seattle on the city’s homeless notification guidelines which are still in draft form. These may serve as a template for notification guidelines in other cities.
• working new language into new construction contracts about homeless notification when projects start up

WSDOT will continue to move forward on developing these guidelines.

Crews have been working in the area of the accident for two years and were in the advanced stages of heavy bridge construction. Railroad tracks crisscross the work zone and trains pass through multiple times a day.

The area is fenced and posted with no trespassing signs.

The work is in conjunction with the I-5 Everett HOV project: www.wsdot.wa.gov/Projects/I5/HOVSR526toUS2/.

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