HENDERSON, N.C. — An 11-year-old Vance County boy was killed Thursday when the four-wheel-drive all-terrain vehicle he was riding overturned, authorities said.

Sheriff Thomas Breedlove said Tyler Moss left home at about 5:15 p.m. on the ATV. He did not return by sundown, and was later found pinned beneath the vehicle on a railroad embankment not far from his home. Authorities believe Moss may have tried to climb the embankment on the ATV.

"It appears that possibly he was on the embankment and it started raring up with him and he may have tried to jump off," Breedlove said. "... And it rolled back down and pinned him underneath."

Breedlove said the boy was wearing a helmet.

Officials say an estimated 170,000 people are hurt every year in ATV accidents. Riders under the age of 24 are most often involved. More than 50,000 of those injured are between the ages of 5 and 14.

Officials say ATVs result in the highest percentage of injuries that require a hospital visit than any other sports or recreational equipment.