When Mike Mitchell took over as the pastor of Dagsboro Church of Christ in 2013, he noticed right away that the road in front of his church was potentially dangerous. The road in question is Dagsboro Road that runs right in front of the church and since 2018, Pastor Mitchell has reached out to several local and state officials, including DelDOT. In an email exchange obtained by TV Delmarva, Pastor Mitchell warned DelDOT that he had reported how dangerous the road was with a passing lane and saying that “someone is going to die” if something wasn’t done. Unfortunately, people have been injured in crashes on the road. And over the past five years, three people have been killed on that stretch of road.
Most recently, members of his church have been involved in crashes and close calls.
Pastor Mitchell says his son-in-law suffered whiplash after he was rear ended while slowing to turn into the church. In addition, several reflectors, solar power lights and fencing have been destroyed on the property from drivers hitting them.
Pastor Mitchell says the frustration has been with state and local officials, who have been unresponsive to the situation.
As for what needs to be done.
Pastor Mitchell says he is scheduled to meet with State Representative Rich Collins on a solution this week. We reached out to DelDOT and State Senator Gerald Hocker for a response to this story. The hope is that something is done before another life is lost on this stretch of road.