The driver of a pickup on N.C. 131 crossed the center line and became the county’s seventh highway death Wednesday.
The male driver, whose name has not been released by the Highway Patrol, was killed in the 10 a.m. crash.
The vehicle was heading south on N.C. 131 near Hog Wallow, just inside Columbus County, when for unknown reasons the truck crossed the centerline and went off the left. It struck a driveway culvert under a heavy concrete driveway, demolishing the vehicle.
First responders cut the truck open to rescue the driver, and a helicopter was called to medevac him to an area hospital. A paramedic on scene said the man had died.
The driver was from Bladen county, according to the Highway Patrol.
The last fatality occurred April 2. Nathaniel Ward was driving a pickup truck that crossed the center line and crashed, ejecting the driver near Clarendon.
