Maintenance worker struck by two cars, dies on I-40 near Garner

A road maintenance worker was killed Friday morning in a work zone crash that closed three eastbound lanes on Interstate 40 near U.S. Highway 70.

Kevarus N. Bowens, 45, of Lumberton, was crossing I-40, returning to his vehicle when when he was struck and killed by an oncoming vehicle, according to the North Carolina State Highway Patrol.

Bowens was part of a team finishing up work near Exit 306 for U.S. 70, close to Garner and Clayton before dawn Friday. He had just removed a sign alerting drivers to a lane closure in the area. Bowens was wearing a reflective vest, and the lights on his work vehicle were flashing, which should have alerted drivers to his presence, authorities said.

According to the North Carolina State Highway Patrol, Rontavion Hunter, 21, of Garner, hit Bowens, knocking him into the road where a second vehicle, driven by Esmeralda Saenz, 21, of Smithfield, hit him. Bowens died at the scene.

Neither Hunter nor Saenz were charged with a crime, and according to the North Carolina State Highway Patrol, neither is suspected of speeding or driving while impaired.

Walking in the road with cars is always dangerous – to pedestrians and drivers. According to the DOT, 250 pedestrians statewide were killed when hit by a motor vehicle in 2023.

Bowens is an employee of Stay Alert Safety Services, which contracts with S.T. Wooten, a private construction company that works with the state Department of Transportation.

He is the second worker to die on I-40 in just over a year.

In May 20223, C.J. Bryant, a father of four and S.T. Wooten employee, died when Jeyson Alexander Murcia-Guillen, of Smithfield, hit him in a work zone near the Jones Sausage Road exit. Murcia-Guillen attempted to run from the scene and was later charged with felony death by vehicle and felony hit-and-run among other charges.

Death causes morning commute delays

Beginning around 7 a.m., the early-morning crash was causing heavy delays as more drivers headed to work. The three lanes reopened before 9 a.m.

Two other cars were involved in a minor crash near the larger scene. It was unclear if the two crashes were related.

Sky 5 showed at least two cars were towed from the scene, including a silver sedan and a red sedan, and the investigation appeared to be centered on a blue car in the middle of the roadway.

A WRAL News crew was at the scene by 4:30 a.m., when the scene was much larger, with multiple firetrucks, EMS and police vehicles assisting.