Local postal worker receives rare award

A speechless Gary Bohannon, US postal service carrier in Cape Girardeau, won the rare Million Mile Award from the National Safety Council today.

The award is given out to a carrier who has delivered mail 30 years without a preventable incident. Any accident that causes as little as $1 worth of damage is recorded, according to Dan Strauss, manager of customer services.

"It's quite a feat really," said Strauss. "It's almost impossible to get." A couple years ago carrier Wayne Chapmann made it 29.5 years without an accident, but had to start all over when his vehicle slid off the road on black ice.

Bohannon is the first to join the Million Mile Club in the past 15 years in Cape Girardeau.

For more details about the award, check back at www.semissourian.com or read Thursday's Southeast Missourian for details.