NC50 closed at Church/Dixon intersection???

update

my son just heard from one of the people involved. it was Brad Austin, Erin Marshall, Mitch Byrd, and Joe Manino. none of them are seriously injured. mitch was airlifted but should be able to go home tonight.

 

that's a huge relief. those pictures of the accident looked horrible.

 

ok so yes they are FOUR students from WJHS & they were headed home after they had an appointment with a teacher after school....this teacher never showed up so kids drove on home. The driver of the mustang crossed over line a few times & Erin saved these kids by evasive driving. One was airlifted to DUKE where he was released at around 7pm.....Erin & Mitch are ok. Brad & JOJO were in back. Sorry to say JOJO is in the worst shape.

He has several areas of his jaw broken & cuts so deep & his head is swelled so badly it does not even look like him. He is conscious & is awating to find out what the surgeon can do.

My heart goes out to all four of them & Erin you did what you had to do & you did right by all involved you saved them all...you had an angel of GOD looking over you all. Please pray for JOJO & the family he is at Wake Med & will not be leaving for a few days or more.

Brad has a broken thumb & nose & his face was cut up as well. So please realize that this is / was a horrible situation & just Thank God that they are alive

I LOVE YOU JOJO!!!!

 

I'm glad they will all be ok in the long run..I heard what was going on while I was at work..such a scary thing.
I drive down that road at least 4 or 5 times a week to go to my mom's house..
Sheri

 

Wow, that's great that they'll be okay. Looking at the pictures I was fearing the worst.

 

Thanks for the update and detaisl LI-Bratz. Please keep us posted on Joe's recovery. I am so glad everyone is going to be ok!

 

Were any charges filed? If I read it correctly, it seems that the other driver was at fault for crossing the center of their lane.

 

my gracious....so many accidents in joco. be careful everyone!

thoughts and prayers to the kids and their families!

 

Just want to say thanks to all for the information about the teens. Glad they are all going to be okay. I would also like to say thanks to this site we are able to find out things that go on around our community. Thanks 4042.com

 

Kudo's to Erin for using good judgment and maturity in her driving skills!

 

I am so glad to hear that the teenagers are okay. Good job to the driver for paying attention! By chance, does anyone know who the driver of the mustang was? I tried looking at an article on line but they didn't list any name.

 

I'm really glad everyone involved will be OK. The pictures from the accident looked horribly scary. This news article lists the other drivers name.

-------------------------------------------------------------
This is the revised story - the news originally had it reported incorrectly - see below for revision.
http://johnston.mync.com/site/johns...e-west-johnston-hs-students-involved-in-wreck

By Marilyn Peguero, NBC17, 1 day, 11 hours ago
Updated: Apr. 22 8:13 pm
JOHNSTON COUNTY, N.C. - Four West Johnson High School students were involved in a wreck about 11 miles north of Benson on NC-50 Tuesday at about 3:15 p.m., according to trooper David Finch.
Thirty-five-year-old Darlene Deschenes -- driving a Ford -- swerved across the center line on NC-50 several times, according to a police report. The teens -- a Honda -- swerved to avoid the driver, but Deschenes swerved again and the two cars collided.
The four teens and Deschenes were injured and taken to hospitals.
The driver of the Honda, 17-year-old Erin Marshall, and two of her passengers, 17-year-old Joseph Mannino and 17-year-old Bradley Austin, were taken to WakeMed. Marshall and Austin were treated and later released. Mannino currently remains at WakeMed in good condition. Another passenger, 16-year-old Mitchell Barton, was taken to Duke University Medical Center by helicopter. His condition is not currently known.
Deschenes was also taken to WakeMed where she was treated and released.
Finch said that according to the incident report, the injuries were non-life threatening.
Alcohol was not a factor in the crash, Finch said.
Both drivers are charged with driving left of the center line.
For coverage from ABC 11, click here.
UPDATE: The original story indicated that Marshall swerved across the center line and subsequently collided with Deschenes. But the police report said it was in fact Deschenes who swerved across the center line several times.


-----------------------------------------------------------------
This is another article covering the story.

http://www.mydailyrecord.com/main.asp?SectionID=1&SubSectionID=1&ArticleID=106478&TM=44057.52
Five Injured In Benson Accident
[FONT=Verdana, Times New Roman, Times, Serif]Wednesday, April 22, 2009[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Times New Roman, Times, Serif]Five people were injured in an two-car accident yesterday afternoon near Benson, including four teens in one car.[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, Times New Roman, Times, Serif]The state Highway Patrol said the accident occurred on N.C. 50 near Friendly Chapel Church Road outside Benson around 3:14.[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, Times New Roman, Times, Serif]The report said the accident occurred between a 2001 Honda sedan driven by 17-year-old Erin Ashley Marshall of Raleigh and a 1997 Ford sedan driven by 36-year-old Darleen Ruth Deschenes of Clayton.[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, Times New Roman, Times, Serif]According to the report, Ms. Deschenes was driving south on N.C. 50 when she crossed the center line several times. Erin, heading north on N.C. 50, crossed the center line to avoid an accident, but was struck when Ms. Deschenes returned her car to her lane of travel.[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, Times New Roman, Times, Serif]The report said Ms. Deschene's vehicle overturned and came to a rest in the roadway while Erin's car came to rest on the left side of the road.[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, Times New Roman, Times, Serif]Injured in Erin's car were, Erin, Mitchell Scott Barton, 16, Joseph Brandon Mannino, 17, and Bradley Austin 17, all of the Clayton/Raleigh area. Mitchell was airlifted to Duke University Medical Center where he was treated and released.[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, Times New Roman, Times, Serif]The rest, including Ms. Deschenes, were transported to WakeMed, where all but Joseph were treated and released. Joseph was listed as being in good condition this morning.[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, Times New Roman, Times, Serif]There was no indication on the report as to why Ms. Deschenes crossed the center line and there was no indication of drug or alcohol use.[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, Times New Roman, Times, Serif]The report said the vehicles hit each other at a speed of between 45 mph and 50 mph. The speed limit on the road is 55 mph.[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, Times New Roman, Times, Serif]Both drivers were ticketed for driving left of center.[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, Times New Roman, Times, Serif]- Reece Murphy[/FONT]
--------------------------------------
This was the original INCORRECT story reported - see above revision
http://johnston.mync.com/site/johns...e-west-johnston-hs-students-involved-in-wreck
Four West Johnson H.S. Students Involved In Wreck
Four West Johnson High School students were involved in a wreck about 11 miles north of Benson on NC 50 Tuesday at about 3:15 p.m., according to trooper David Finch.
A teen driver in a Honda swerved across the center line several times, Finch said. A driver in a Ford swerved to avoid the Honda, but the teen driver swerved again and the two cars collided.
Four teens in the Honda and the driver of the Ford, 35-year-old Darlene Deschenes, were injured and taken to hospitals.
The driver of the Honda, 17-year-old Erin Marshall, and two of her passengers, 17-year-old Joseph Mannino and 17-year-old Bradley Austin, were taken to WakeMed. Another passenger, 16-year-old Mitchell Barton, was taken to Duke University Medical Center by helicopter.
Darlene Deschenes, the driver of the Ford, was also taken to WakeMed.
Finch said that according to the incident report, the injuries were non-life threatening.
Alcohol was not a factor in the crash, Finch said.
Both drivers are charged with driving left of the center line.

 

It is actually Mitch Barton, not Byrd. Just wanted to make sure and clarify, so no one freaked out when they saw Mitch Byrd.

 

I don't understand why Erin was given a ticket if the reason she was across the line was because the other lady was on her side of the road. That's stupid to me. They should give Erin credit for driving defensively, not give her a ticket.

 

I was just about to ask the same thing. It doesn't make sense to me either.

 

update on JOJO & update on ticket

Thank you to everyone for keeping this real

As for JOJO he came through surgery well. He will have metal plates in his jaw & his jaw is on "lockdown" for seven weeks. He is joking-now he can loose some weight LOL

as for the ticket under legislation that was passed in the late 90's if there is injury & officer can not make determination of who is at fault then parties get ticket-that is a law.

I am very distraught of the nerve of the State trooped who gave her-Erin- the ticket on scene & told her it was her fault! Let me clarify Erin did the right thing bottom line I am very impressed with her ability to forsee the possiblity of the worse case scenario while it was occurring. Erin had no other alternative but to go left of center (which is against the law) otherwise the accident would have resulted in deaths-.

What will happen now they will have to go to court & they will have the accident recreated & determined who is at fault once that coordinator puts all the pieces together. I thank God that there was another person who saw what occurred. So lets all pray for Erin & hope that justice is served positively in her favor & again Thank you Erin for saving all your lives.

 

Boy it just ticks me off that the officer could not see what happened (or listen to the witness) and not give this child a ticket. She should be praised for her driving skills and NOT given a ticket.

I may just have to fire off a letter over this one. I'm mad! :banghead:

 

Hopefully it gets thrown out of court fast. I truly wonder what evidence there was to warrant a ticket.

I guess in the end it's small compared to the miracle of everyone surviving and being okay, but it's not fair to give the perception that someone was in the wrong if they weren't.

 

I was thinking the same thing....

Higher insurance and a costly ticket vs. death....that's a no brainer for sure.

 

It is Trooper Watkins.....

I am mad that he gave her the ticket at all. I am also mad that he gave her the ticket at the scene. That could hve been handled a completely different way. I am a former Police Officer & there was a better way of handling this situation!!!