LAWTON – Temporary traffic signals at a major intersection in west Lawton will have to suffice for several more months, city officials report.
A four-vehicle wreck at Cache Road and 67th Street in the early morning hours of July 18 knocked down a mast-arm pole supporting traffic signals, and caused a fatality that resulted in multiple criminal charges against a Lawtonian.
A temporary light pole has been erected “and the lights should work to an acceptable degree until a permanent replacement pole is installed,” the city’s Traffic Control Division reported. However, they added, a permanent pole “will likely not be installed until perhaps March or April of next year.”
The Traffic Control Division solicited a quote for a similar pole last month, “and that quote came in at $7,250,” city officials said. “This was from a traffic installation vendor, but we may be able to get a better price if we go directly to a pole manufacturer, so we are looking into this option.”
A replacement pole may take 16 to 22 weeks to arrive, according to information received from industry representatives, “and that could be fairly optimistic because of ongoing supply chain issues.”
Approximately 16,600 vehicles pass through that intersection on Cache Road each day, traffic counts performed in 2017 by the Oklahoma Department of Transportation indicate.
Investigators said a pickup driven by Nevin Berke Whitis was traveling east on Cache Road about 2 a.m. July 18 when it plowed into the back of a car driven by Jonathan Michael Flores, 29, of Lawton, who was idling at 67th Street, waiting for a red light to change. The pickup smashed into the pole and it collapsed. The impact pushed Flores’ vehicle into the intersection, where it was struck by a car, injuring three people in that vehicle. Another car was involved in the wreck, too, but no injuries were reported in it.
Flores was killed in the wreck, and flowers were placed at the site as a memorial.
Whitis, 29, has been charged in Comanche County District Court with first-degree manslaughter, driving while under the influence of alcohol, reckless driving, and transporting a loaded firearm in a motor vehicle. His bond was set at $200,000 and a preliminary hearing conference is scheduled for November 8 at 3 p.m. before Comanche County Special District Judge Grant Sheperd.