A 45-year-old bridge inspector from Lancaster was killed while working in an I-70 construction zone in Zanesville after a westbound semi-truck struck her, authorities say. Jennifer Donley had been hired by the Ohio Department of Transportation in 2022 and was working on the I-70 Reconstruction Project at the time of the crash.
Driver Identified, Investigation Underway
According to WHIZ - Fox 5, Donley was struck by a semi traveling westbound on I-70 around 8:10 a.m. A separate report from Yahoo News put the time at approximately 8:09 a.m. and identified the driver as Brian Carter, 54, of Indianapolis, noting that he was not injured in the crash. The seed report from NBC4 WCMH-TV adds that Ohio State Highway Patrol troopers arrived at the crash site, near mile marker 154 on I-70, at 8:09 a.m., and that the Freightliner had been traveling west before striking Donley.
A preliminary investigation from the Ohio State Highway Patrol, relayed by WHIO TV 7 and WHIO Radio, said the westbound Freightliner struck Donley while she was working inside the construction zone, according to WHIO TV 7 and WHIO Radio.
Highway Shut Down for Hours
The crash forced a lengthy closure of one of central Ohio's busiest interstate corridors. Per the same Yahoo News account, westbound I-70 was closed from Maple Avenue to the Adamsville Road exit for approximately four hours, with lanes reopening around 12:30 p.m.
ODOT Director Pamela Boratyn announced Donley's death, per WHIO TV 7 and WHIO Radio's reporting. The agency confirmed she had worked for the Ohio Department of Transportation for four years and served as a bridge inspector on the I-70 project, a role that placed her inside the active work zone where the crash occurred.
Work Zones Under Scrutiny Statewide
Donley's death adds to a grim picture emerging from state crash data. A traffic safety bulletin snippet from the Ohio State Highway Patrol reports that the 2024 work zone fatal-crash figure was 22% above the 2019-2023 average. For the full 2020-2024 period, it lists 92 fatal crashes that killed 101 people and injured another 8,165. A separate federal factsheet from the Federal Highway Administration notes that work zone fatalities nationally decreased by about 6% from 2023 to 2024, though the two figures are not directly comparable given the limited context available in each snippet.
As reported by NBC4 WCMH-TV, the Ohio State Highway Patrol is investigating the crash. No further details on citations, charges, or court proceedings have been released as the investigation continues.
