May 20, 2021 Five road workers were killed while on the job in Michigan during 2020. While their families continue to mourn, a spike in worker deaths last year has sparked concern for workers as another summer construction season begins. The five workers who were killed in 2020 represents a sharp increase from two deaths in 2019, according to Michigan Department of Transportation data. Even more troubling, that increase in fatalities occurred as MDOT reported a significant decrease in traffic volume amid the COVID-19 pandemic. “What this tells us with traffic volumes being down … we just really need people to pay attention to speeds in the work zone. Those signs are there for a reason. When it says 55, we need you to drive 55," MDOT spokesperson Courtney Bates said. READ MORE ►Inches from danger: The view from a Michigan highway work zone As promised, Michigan’s Unemployment Insurance Agency is reinstating the work search requirement for unemployment benefits. Those receiving unemployment benefits must prove they are searching for work starting May 30, the Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity announced. Work search is required for those receiving benefits under the state’s regular unemployment insurance program as well as federal benefit programs. The work search requirement was suspended in March 2020 to help get benefits to those who became unemployed due to the pandemic. MORE As she reflects on the events of the past year, Midland County flood survivor Anna Merillat searches for the right word to describe how she feels. Maybe there isn’t one. “When I look back on it, I see, probably, the worst, one of the worst, things I have lived through and also the best, if that can make any sense at all,” said the Sanford resident and small business owner. She is one of thousands affected by the flood in Midland and surrounding counties who have worked to rebuild their lives and communities in the past 12 months. MORE Iris and Lili Costilla packed lightly for their first day as tennis players. No bags, no balls, no racquets. No experience, no know-how, no clue. “We came with a water bottle,” Iris said. “And that’s it.” One month later, the Costilla sisters stepped on the court as the No. 1 singles tandem for Bay City All Saints in the Division 4 regional – fresh off of three straight, three-set victories that few could have seen coming from the ultra-tennis newbies. Basketball and volleyball players by trade, neither had so much as swung a racquet before joining the tennis team one day prior to the first match of the season. MORE In exchange for leniency, a Michigan man has agreed to help prosecutors in their efforts to convict fellow members of a militia group accused of plotting to kidnap Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. Maxwell Wyckoff, 22, was a Wolverine Watchmen militia member whose associates are accused in the kidnap plot. “The plea includes the assurance that Wyckoff will cooperate with the Department’s ongoing investigation into the Wolverine Watchmen and the eight members involved in the alleged plot to kidnap the governor,” announced the Michigan attorney general’s office said. MORE Get your local news 24/7 Connect with MLive To ensure receipt of our emails, please add newsletters@update.mlive to your address book or safe sender list. |