Teen killed, driver charged after truck goes off I-540 bridge in Wake County
WAKE COUNTY, N.C. (WTVD) -- The North Carolina Highway Patrol said Monday that a driver has been charged in a deadly crash in Wake County that happened during the weekend.
The crash involving two vehicles occurred around 9:45 a.m. Saturday in the eastbound lanes of Interstate 540 at the Neuse River Bridge.
A teen was killed and another person was injured when one vehicle went over the guardrail.
State troopers said a 2008 Ford F-350 Super Duty, driven by Joshua Phillip Lewis, 36, was traveling east on I-540 in the middle lane approaching the Neuse River Bridge. A 2017 Dodge Charger, driven by 67-year-old Ulysses Harris, was in the left travel lane. The Ford F-350 Super Duty's front left tire blew out, and Lewis overcorrected, the Highway Patrol said, causing the truck to veer left and sideswipe the Charger.
The truck then struck the median guardrail, overturned down a steep embankment, and came to rest on its roof. The front right passenger, a 13-year-old, was pronounced dead at the scene.
Lewis was taken to WakeMed for injuries suffered in the wreck. Harris was not injured.
Lewis was subsequently charged with misdemeanor death by motor vehicle and unsafe tires.
The crash remains under investigation.
The lanes were closed for several hours.
