Injured girl cut from car wreckage in Clayton
CLAYTON (WTVD) -- A 14-year-old girl suffered serious injuries after a head-on crash in Johnston County Tuesday night.
The crash happened around 8 p.m. on McLemore Road in Clayton.
The North Carolina Highway Patrol, as well as the nearby Cleveland Fire Department, responded to the scene. Firefighters had to use the Jaws of Life to rescue the teen from the wreckage.
The girl has been identified as Laura Castro, a student at Triton High School in Erwin. Her mother said her husband, Michael Castro, had just picked up their daughter from soccer practice. The two were on their way home to Dunn.
Laura's mom said she talked to her daughter on the phone at 8:11 p.m. and at 8:13 p.m. the accident happened.
"There was a Jeep Cherokee that came onto my side of the road and knocked my Volkswagen Passat off the road," said Michael Castro in his 911 call.
Cleveland Fire Chief Chris Ellington said the crash happened about half a mile from their fire station and that there happened to be an officer's meeting at the time.
"Response was tremendous," said Chief Ellington, who also said Laura was awake when they pulled her from the car. She was then taken to WakeMed hospital.
"It was raining. Some bad storms had been coming through. I just heard a really loud thud," said eyewitness Brandi Autry.
The accident happened almost right in front of her house. She said she ran over to see if she could help and called 911.
"I was just looking around to see who we could help, make sure they were okay," said Autry.
While Laura is listed in fair condition at WakeMed, her parents said she did have surgery on Wednesday. They said doctors installed a rod in her leg to fix her right femur.
No one else in the crash was seriously hurt.
It is unclear what caused the accident. The Highway Patrol is investigating.
Editor's note: An earlier version of this story incorrectly identified the victim as a boy.
