Exclusive: Fayetteville crash victim speaks to ABC11
FAYETTEVILLE (WTVD) -- Authorities have started releasing more information about the deadly crash that claimed the lives of five people Wednesday night in Fayetteville, and one of the injured victims spoke exclusively to ABC11 about his experience.
Watch the exclusive interview in the video player above
Five people were killed and three others were injured in a three-vehicle accident shortly after 8 p.m. on Cliffdale Road near Lynhurst Drive, near Skibo Road. Four died in the crash. The fifth passed away Thursday morning. Police have released the names of some of the victims, including a young mother of three.
Shannah Lee Botts, 33, of Fayetteville, was killed in the wreck. Police said Botts was driving her Kia home from the gym when she crashed. She has three children.
Authorities named two of the injured drivers on Thursday, though they are withholding the identities of the deceased victims until their families are notified.
Terek Rashad Johnson, 22, of Fayetteville was driving a Mustang. He's listed in serious condition at Cape Fear Valley Medical Center.
The third driver in a Ford Crown Victoria was identified as 29-year-old Dadrian Rashad Thomas of Fayetteville. He was treated at the hospital and released.
Fayetteville Police Chief Harold Medlock said the other victims appeared to be "young," perhaps in their late teens or early 20s.
"This is the worst crash I have ever seen in my career," Medlock said.
WATCH: ABC11 raw video from the scene
Frantic 911 calls paint the bystanders' picture of this deadly accident.
911 caller: Ma'am everyone is trapped, the car is flipped over and I think these people are trying to move the dude out of the car!
911 caller: There is one car completely upside-down and it's smoking. I think there are four or five cars involved.
911 operator: You say you see smoke, do you see flames?
911 caller: I don't see flames, but there is smoke. There is definitely smoke and a lot of it.
All lanes on Cliffdale Road between Windemere Drive and Lansdowne Road had to be closed for several hours until emergency crews were able to clear the area.
As a small memorial of flowers and a handmade cross adorned the intersection Thursday, neighbors lament on the history of bad wrecks in the area.
"[Wednesday] was literally the worst I have ever seen because there was already people laying on the ground," said resident Yvonne Kinston.
Kinston said she and her neighbors have seen other bad wrecks on Cliffdale Road. Kinston says car fly up and down the road without regard to the 45 mph speed limit.
"Even late at night, you can hear people racing, up and down the road and things," Kinston shared. "And at peak hours, it's more difficult to even get out of the neighborhood. You are really taking a chance."
Eyewitnesses said they saw a motorcycle involved in Wednesday's crash, but there wasn't one at the accident scene.
Officers continue to investigate and are looking into whether there was some sort of altercation before the crash.
"It's just so early ... we have detectives all over the city trying to piece all of this together ... you can't make sense of this," Medlock said - referring to the complexity of the accident. "The best I could tell you is that what we have been told is that there may have been an altercation shortly before this occurred. We're still trying to figure out if these vehicles were involved in that altercation."
Police said they believed at least one of the cars was traveling at a high rate of speed.
"They do believe speed was a factor," said Lt. David McLaurin with FPD. "But they do not know concretely when the sequence of events was."
Anyone with information concerning the fatal crash is asked to contact the Fayetteville Police Department's Traffic Unit at (910) 433-1830 or Crimestoppers at (910) 483-TIPS (8477).
Crimestoppers information can also be submitted online by completing the anonymous online tip sheet or by text-a-tip on your mobile device by sending a message to 274637 (in the text box type "4Tip" followed by your message).
