By Matthew E. Milliken
mmilliken@heraldsun.com; 419-6684
DURHAM -- Two Durham teenagers were killed Saturday night in a Carteret County automobile accident.
Although officials had not confirmed the names of the deceased as of early Sunday evening, multiple sources identified them as Miles Moorman and Brantley Pearce. Moorman was a recent graduate of the Durham Performance Learning Center and Pearce was a senior at Riverside High School, sources indicated.
As of early Sunday evening, the Highway Patrol had yet to conclude its investigation or release details about the collision. However, Chris Brock, the Otway Volunteer Fire Department chief who coordinated the response to the crash, said that the accident occurred after the victims made a legal left turn in a spot that has proven dangerous in the past.
"I know it doesn't make anybody feel better in the end, but apparently, that was just the wrong place at the wrong time for everybody involved last night," Brock said. "I personally cannot see where a finger of blame could be pointed, other than just it was just unfortunate for everybody involved."
According to Brock, four teenagers, including two passengers whom other sources identified as female seniors at Northern High School, were traveling in a Honda Accord on Straits Road before the crash. The Honda apparently came to a stop and then turned left to travel east on Harkers Island Road around 8:10 p.m. Saturday.
At that point, Brock said, Harkers Island Road has a slight curve, and due to the angle at which the roads meet the Honda would have had to turn more than 90 degrees. The Honda and a westbound Ford Explorer towing a boat experienced what Brock called an offset head-on collision.
The impact caused the Ford to flip, Brock said, and detached both the boat from its trailer and the trailer from the SUV. After rolling over twice, the Ford ended up atop the trailer it had been hauling.
The speed limit on that stretch of Harkers Island Road is 55 miles per hour. Brock saw no indications that either alcohol consumption or speeding were factors in the crash.
"I've been affiliated with this department for going on eight years now, and there have been numerous accidents at that intersection," Brock said. This was the first fatal collision there that he knows of, although he has seen vehicles severely damaged.
Emergency responders initially summoned helicopters for Pearce and Moorman, who were both in the front seat of the Honda, but canceled the request after it was determined at the scene that they had died. None of the other people involved in the collision appeared to have life-threatening injuries, Brock said. All were taken to Carteret General Hospital, although some were later transported to Pitt County Memorial Hospital.
News reports indicated that Smyrna Elementary School principal Chris Yeomans and his family occupied the Ford.
Clements Funeral Service is handling funeral arrangements for both victims of the crash. As of Sunday night, details had yet to be arranged. A candlelight service was scheduled for Sunday evening to honor Moorman and Pearce.
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