NDOT worker shot in Northern Nevada construction zone; suspect dead

A man suspected of shooting a Nevada Department of Transportation worker in Northern Nevada early Wednesday later died after an hourslong standoff with law enforcement.

The state transportation worker was hospitalized and stable after being airlifted from the scene, Nevada Highway Patrol Sgt. Matt McLaughlin said in a news release.

Authorities were alerted to the shooting just before 10 a.m., when a Highway Patrol trooper traveling north on state Route 278, between Eureka and Carlin, saw a white cargo van speeding southbound on the shoulder of the roadway near mile marker 68, according to the release.

The trooper then came up on the wounded worker, who had been shot several times in a construction zone, according to the release. State transportation workers had been repaving a section of roadway in the area. The trooper treated the worker at the scene before heading south on the highway, trying to locate the suspected shooter.

Farther south on the highway, troopers located the suspected shooter’s van. With the assistance of area law enforcement, authorities deployed spike strips, disabling the vehicle near mile marker 27, according to the release.

After the vehicle became inoperable, McLaughlin said the suspected shooter got out of the van and exchanged gunfire with troopers. Following a standoff with law enforcement, the suspected shooter had been taken into custody as of about 1 p.m. and moved from the scene for medical treatment.

Highway Patrol reported his death at 4:30 p.m.

No one else was injured, according to the release. The suspected shooter was not identified Wednesday.

“All of us at NDOT were heartbroken to learn about the tragic shooting of one of our valued team members,” Kristina Swallow, director of the Nevada Department of Transportation, said in a statement Wednesday evening. “I want to wish our team member a speedy recovery, and I want to thank the law enforcement agencies and medical professionals for responding quickly to the scene and providing first aid.”

The situation prompted authorities to shut down the 91-mile state Route 278, bordered by Interstate 80 and state Route 50. The roadway remained closed Wednesday afternoon as authorities continued to investigate.

Contact Tony Garcia at tgarcia@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0307. Follow @TonyGLVNews on Twitter. Review-Journal staff writer Mick Akers contributed to this report.