Three people were killed and a fourth was seriously injured early Saturday in a violent single-vehicle crash on U.S. 1 in southern Wake County, according to state troopers. The car was headed north near Friendship Road when it ran off the roadway, flipped multiple times and came to rest in a ditch. Emergency crews pronounced three occupants dead at the scene and rushed a fourth to WakeMed Raleigh with serious injuries. Investigators say high speed is being treated as a primary contributing factor as they work to reconstruct what happened.
According to ABC11, troopers were alerted just after 12:28 a.m. to the crash on the northbound side of U.S. 1 near Friendship Road. The outlet reports the vehicle was a 2014 Infiniti Q50 that was speeding in the northbound lanes when the driver lost control and the sedan overturned several times.
Crash scene and response
WRAL reports troopers arrived to find the vehicle overturned and badly damaged, with two occupants ejected during the rollover. Crews shut down the right northbound lane near Friendship Road for several hours while investigators documented the scene, and WRAL notes that lanes reopened around 4 a.m.
Victims and injuries
ABC11 identified the driver as 21-year-old Darius Josiah Stevens of Spring Lake. The station also named 19-year-old front-seat passenger Marion Kim of Jacinto, California, as one of those killed. A 20-year-old left-rear passenger, whose name has not yet been released pending notification of family, was also ejected and died at the scene. The sole survivor is a 22-year-old man from Laredo, Texas, who ABC11 reports was restrained and was taken to WakeMed Raleigh in serious but stable condition.
Investigation underway
The State Highway Patrol is leading the investigation and, according to earlier reporting from WRAL, troopers consider speed a primary contributing factor in the crash. Reconstruction work is ongoing, and authorities have not released further details. Troopers are asking anyone who may have information about the incident to contact the Highway Patrol.
