WOMAN SURVIVES WRECK WITH TRACTOR TRAILER


A yet-to-be identified driver had to be cut out of her vehicle with the "Jaws of Life."

By Jon Mayhew (VALE) -- A woman traveling towards Lincolnton on Reepsville Road Friday afternoon only suffered cuts and scrapes after she collides with a tractor trailer that’s traveling in the opposite direction.

The North Carolina Highway Patrol is investigating the collision, along with the NCHP Motor Carrier Enforcement.

Around 4:30pm, Union firefighters -- along with members of the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office, Lincoln Rescue and Lincoln EMS -- were dispatched to the 2200 block of Reepsville Road near Meadowlark Lane.

Firefighters arriving on the scene discovered the tractor trailer at least 1,000 feet from the car, with debris covering the road between the two vehicles. The woman was pinned inside the car and had to be freed with the “Jaws of Life.”

The tractor trailer, which was with Piedmont Transportation Inc of Vale, only suffered minor wheel damage to the trailer. The vehicle, meantime, was a total loss.

A pickup truck suffered minor damage as a result of the impact of the car and tractor trailer.


A tire, axle and part of a wheel on the side of the road after impact.

The witness told The Carolina Scoop about what happened after the first two vehicles collided.

“The car kept spinning around and around,” said the witness. “She struck the front tire of my pickup then continued spinning out of control.”

The car came to rest next to a utility pole across a ditch.

Reepsville Road was closed down for more than 90 minutes. Residents that said they lived either in the area of the accident or past the accident scene had two questions.

“What happened and how long is the road going to be blocked off,” asked one motorist.

Medic told The Carolina Scoop at the scene the woman was expected to be OK having suffered only minor injuries. She was taken to Carolinas Medical Center Lincoln.