WILSON’S MILLS, N.C. (WNCN) — A Smithfield man died, and a woman was critically injured in a fiery one-car crash in Johnston County early Sunday, Wilson’s Mills fire officials said.
The crash was reported just after 1:45 a.m. Sunday, with at least two 911 calls about the crash on Powhatan Road at Pocahontas Trail, according to a Wilson’s Mills Fire Department news release.
When crews arrived, they found a car that was burning following a “high speed” crash into a tree about two miles northwest of Wilson’s Mills, officials said. The wrecked car, a 2016 Dodge Charger Hellcat, was “traveling well in excess of 100 mph” at the time of the crash, the North Carolina State Highway said.
A woman who had been in the car initially told arriving crews that there were five people in the car.
However, fire crews searched in the area and found that there were only two victims in the crash.
A man who was driving was found dead in the car, the news release said. He was identified as Alexis Quintanilla, 28, of Smithfield, Trooper Joseph Deal told CBS 17 Sunday night.
A woman passenger suffered life-threatening injuries and was taken by Johnston County EMS to WakeMed, the release said. The injured woman also had burns over 20 percent of her body and was later transferred to UNC Hospital in Chapel Hill, fire officials said.
Crews were able to quickly extinguish the car fire, but worked for about half an hour to remove the driver’s body from the car.
The crash happened as the Dodge was heading southeast on Powhatan Road toward Wilson’s Mills, Deal said.
Powhatan Road was closed between Wilson Farm Lane and Colonial Drive for several hours after the crash. Crews from Clayton Rescue 1 assisted in the incident, fire officials said.
The highway patrol said a contributing factor in the crash was high speed.
