Car flips on top of accident victim
By Nick Hiltunen
Published in News on June 9, 2008 2:04 PM
A Mount Olive man was crushed to death after being ejected in a one-car crash Sunday afternoon in Dudley, a state Highway Patrol trooper said.
Craig Leshaun Darden, 30, Daly Boulevard, Mount Olive, was exceeding the posted speed limit on Durham Lake Road in Dudley at the time of the accident, Trooper R.W. Murphy said.
"Right now, we haven't put a number on anything, but he was exceeding the posted speed limit," Murphy said.
Darden was headed north on Durham Lake when he crossed the center line, investigators said.
"Traveling in the opposite lane of travel, he overcorrected, and the back end of his car stared sliding and coming around on him," Murphy said.
That's when the 1995 Cadillac that Darden was driving ran off the right to the right, striking a ditch, the trooper said.
"When he struck that ditch, he started overturning, and upon it overturning, he was ejected out of the vehicle," the trooper said. "The vehicle continued overturning and landed on top of Mr. Darden."
Murphy said the Highway Patrol was first notified of the crash around 1 p.m. on Sunday. Mar Mac Volunteeer Fire Department units responded to the call, along with Wayne County EMS Station 8.
Darden was dead at the scene. It took about 20 minutes to extricate him from the wrecked vehicle. The roadway was shut down for about two hours.