County DOT worker dies from COVID-19

He is the first county employee to die from the virus

April 16, 2020 8:39 p.m.

A Montgomery County Department of Transportation employee died Wednesday night due to coronavirus disease, county officials said Thursday.

Michael Miller, 60, who helped manage the county’s Ride On bus fleet, died due to complications from the virus, also known as COVID-19, County Council President Sidney Katz said in a statement released Thursday afternoon.

In a separate press release, county officials wrote that Miller had worked for Montgomery County since 2011 and lived in Prince George’s County. Miller worked in the Bethesda and Silver Spring maintenance facilities, officials said.

- Advertisement -

The press release stated that Miller stopped working March 30 after he became sick, and county officials learned he had the virus on April 7. He died on Wednesday evening, the press release stated.

Katz said Miller is the first county government employee to die from the virus.

“The Council expresses its deepest condolences to Mr. Miller’s family including his wife Donna and their children,” Katz said in the statement. “We are also thinking about Mr. Miller’s coworkers at the Department of Transportation and especially his colleagues at the Silver Spring/Bethesda Depot where he worked on behalf of all County residents.”

Andre Lucas, the department’s depot chief, said in the press release that Miller had an “infectious smile and caring personality,” and was dedicated to his job and his coworkers.

“He was much appreciated for his willingness to go above and beyond at any moment to get the job done,” Lucas said.

Sponsored
Face of the Week

As of Thursday morning, 56 people in Montgomery County had died from the virus according to the Maryland Department of Health. There were also 14 “probable” deaths, in which the virus is listed as the cause of death on the death certificate, but it wasn’t confirmed by a laboratory test.

Dan Schere can be reached at daniel.schere@moco360.media

***

For other Bethesda Beat coverage of the coronavirus, click here.

To see a timeline of major coronavirus developments in Maryland and Montgomery County, click here.

Digital Partners

Enter our essay contest