Flagperson 'not surprised' worker hit by car

At least one worker in St. John's says she's not surprised a fellow flagperson was hit by a car last week, with rough winter weather conditions and some impatient drivers making many days a hazard.

Karen Parsons has been working as a flagperson for the last five years, and currently works with Pyramid Construction.

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Parsons said while she likes her job, there are definitely some risks the biggest being the vehicles she's supposed to be flagging.

Last Thursday, a flagperson was hit by a car and knocked down in a construction area on Kenmount Road.

"I wasn't surprised to hear it, considering the weather conditions and the fact that people don't slow down," said Parsons.

"Just a couple weeks ago, actually, one of my friends from this company that I work with got struck as well, so it's not something that I didn't hear before."

According to Parsons, the driver in that case said he didn't see the flagperson.

"It's not hard for drivers to get frustrated when they come around work sites. It can get confusing and I know people got schedules and need to get to places and stuff like that, but we're not there to hamper anybody's day. We're there [because] we've got a job to do," she said.

"So we just try to explain as best we can that we're trying to do our best and hope we don't delay them too long."

Parsons added that most drivers are OK, even with delays, but there are some days when people just don't have patience.

"You do have some people that are a bit more not so nice, but we just try to keep a smile on our face and just go from there."