‘Breaks my heart’; 4 dead in Eden after city dump truck hits several people working on power lines

EDEN, N.C. (WGHP) — A community is in shock after four workers were killed in a crash that the highway patrol is now investigating. On Thursday afternoon, contractors for Duke Energy were working on powerlines in the area of Church and Carroll Streets in Eden when a city dump truck failed to stop at the intersection, hitting six men. Four were killed instantly. They were identified by troopers as: Carter, Evans and Lockwood were employees of Carolina Power, and Sides was an employee of Victory Powerline Services. A GoFundMe was launched Friday to benefit Lockwood's surviving family. Two other Carolina Power employees, a 24-year-old and a 34-year-old, were taken to the hospital with critical injuries. The 34-year-old is considered stable, but the younger man was still critical at last check. After striking the workers, the dump truck hit a bucket truck, which a Carolina Power employee was in, and ran off the road, crashing into a ditch. The worker in the bucket truck is OK. The driver of the dump truck, identified as 66-year-old Michael Ray Vernon, of Eden, was also taken to the hospital for minor injuries. He has been charged with a stop sign violation and misdemeanor death by motor vehicle. According to the City of Eden, Vernon is an equipment operator II employee with the Solid Waste Division of the City. His first day was Aug. 23, 2017. As of Thursday, he is on administrative leave. On Friday, the National Transportation Safety Board announced it is now conducting a safety investigation into the crash. The City of Eden shared the following statement on Friday afternoon: Carolina Power and Signalization issued a statement Friday, extending prayers to the victims, their colleagues and the victims' families: Victory Powerline Services also shared a statement: Zykea Lowe, who witnessed the crash, described the scene, saying, "He was going really fast. I'm talking about at least 70 to 80 miles per hour. He didn't stop at all." Cindy Anthony, who also witnessed the crash, said, "It's heartbreaking for me because that could've been my family. It breaks my heart. These people had wives. They had children. It's heartbreaking because the children don't have a dad. The wives don't have a husband anymore. It's just terrible." Susan Woods was emotional as she placed white flowers at the site and said she knows the father of one of the men who died. “Time supposedly heals all wounds, but things are going to hurt, and they're going to keep hurting. As a small town, we will come together and mourn for the losses,” Hostetter said. Gov. Josh Stein's office responded to the crash with a statement on Friday: In a statement, the Rockingham County administration and the Board of Commissioners said: "On behalf of the employees of Rockingham County and the Board of Commissioners, we extend our deepest and most heartfelt condolences to the families of those who tragically lost their lives in Eden on Thursday. This devastating loss is one that touches not just their loved ones, but our entire community. To those who were injured, we send our sincerest wishes for strength and a full recovery. We would like to thank the first responders and others who assisted following the tragic accident. Our prayers are with each of those affected by this accident in the challenging days to come." Duke Energy provided the following statement: Prime Line Power shared a statement of support last night: Troopers say they do not believe impairment was a factor and the investigation is ongoing. Because the crash involved a City of Eden vehicle, the city relinquished the investigation to the North Carolina State Highway Patrol. The NTSB is also investigating, it announced on Friday. "The NTSB regularly investigates road and highway crashes to identify possible system-wide safety issues that could have nationwide impacts and makes recommendations on how to prevent similar crashes from occurring in the future," the NTSB said in a statement.