Authorities: DOT Truck Caused Fatal Wreck

A Suzuki Aero driven by Walter Lee Brothers Jr., of Willow Springs, and a DOT truck driven by Carl Ray Collins, 56, of Wilson, collided near the intersection of N.C. Highway 210 and N.C. Highway 50. Both men died in the wreck, in which the truck carrying hot asphalt ended up on top of the car.

State Highway Patrol troopers initially said the Suzuki ran off the road and overcorrected in getting back on the highway, crossing the center line and colliding head-on with the DOT truck.

A witness to the accident who left the scene before authorities arrived spoke with troopers Tuesday, and a Highway Patrol accident reconstruction team then reviewed its findings, authorities said.

Authorities determined that the DOT truck went out of control as it came out of a curve on N.C. 210. The Suzuki ran off the road trying to avoid the truck, but the truck also went off the road and struck the Suzuki, authorities said.

A second collision happened after the truck and Suzuki wrecked, and the drivers left the scene without notifying troopers, authorities said. The debris left by the second collision was initially thought to be from the fatal wreck, which led to the initially mistaken analysis of the scene, authorities said.