Driver dead, 2-year-old seriously hurt in I-40 crash Christmas morning, NC troopers say
An argument in a pickup is blamed for a fatal crash that ended with a driver and a 2-year-old thrown from different vehicles onto Interstate 40 in Burke County, according to the NC Highway Patrol.
The pickup driver, Monica Torres-Garcia, 39, of Bessemer City, later died at a hospital in Valdese, officials said.
The toddler suffered serious injuries and remains hospitalized in Charlotte, according to a news release.
Investigators say the crash happened around 1 a.m. Friday in the Morganton area, about 70 miles northwest of Charlotte.
“A 2020 Ford F-150 was traveling east and began driving recklessly as the occupants were involved in a verbal altercation,” Master Trooper Jeffrey Swagger said in the release.
“The pickup sideswiped an eastbound 2002 Chevrolet Trailblazer, and both vehicles collided with the guardrail several times. The driver of the Ford and a 2-year-old passenger in the Chevrolet were both ejected during the collision. Alcohol is suspected as a contributing circumstance.”
A passenger in the pickup suffered minor injuries and was not hospitalized, he said.
The driver of the Chevrolet Trailblazer was identified as 30-year-old Amanda Palumbo of Winston-Salem. She and four children in the vehicle suffered minor injuries and were taken to a hospital in Valdese, Swagger said in the release.
The 2-year-old, who was not properly restrained in a car seat, was taken to Levine Children’s Hospital in Charlotte, he said.
