Tree planting marks 20 years since state highway worker's death
Two decades to the day after Patrick Mapleson was struck by a cement truck and killed while filling potholes in Eastport, his family, friends and fellow state transportation road crew remembered him Tuesday by planting a maple tree in his honor and urging drivers to pay attention in work zones.
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In 2025, there were 33 work zone intrusions on Long Island state roads that resulted in injuries to five DOT workers. The state defines a work zone intrusion as "an incident where a motor vehicle has entered a portion of the roadway closed due to construction or maintenance activity."