Union County, NC : Driver of the pickup and 10-year-old son died after their minivan hit by a pickup truck in Union County on Monday afternoon, March 21, 2016

A child who was in an early morning crash in Union County passed away from his injuries Monday afternoon, according to troopers. A Charlotte man who also died in the crash, troopers say, crossed the center line and hit a van with the children inside. The van was on its way to a nearby elementary school.

According to the North Carolina Highway Patrol, 43-year-old Richard Lewis Moss, of Charlotte, crossed a center line along Old Pageland Monroe Road near East Village Drive in Monroe Monday morning.

According to investigators, Moss' truck collided with a van that had an adult and three children inside. All three children are believed to be between the ages of 10 and 13 years old.

State highway patrol troopers say Moss’s truck crossed the center line striking the family’s SUV headlight to headlight. Investigators are still working to determine how fast the two vehicles were going combined.

"We’re looking at somewhere 90 to 100 mile per hour impact it's like hitting a brick wall going that fast," Trooper John Burgin explained.

Jastm Williams, a student at Forest Hills High School was waiting for the school bus when he heard the crash. His brother Shekle Williams said Jastm called 911.

"He missed the bus just to help them and get them out of it. So I was proud of him for that," Shekle Williams said.

Jastm Williams helped the family that was headed to Rock Rest Elementary school less than 2 miles away. He told WBTV, one of the kids was able to get out.

"She was trying to get out of the car while she was yelling for help. The rest of them was trapped," Williams said.

"A family was in a van when they was in the van I guess the truck hit them and when the truck hit them, he ran over there and got the two little girls out. There was a little boy left in there too, I guess he got him out too but somebody was unresponsive," Shekle Williams said.

The boy had to be rushed to Carolinas Medical Center-Main, in Charlotte, by helicopter. State highway patrol said early Monday that the boy was hanging on and hoping for a transplant. They said he passed away around 6 p.m.

His two sisters have several broken bones and are also at the hospital. The driver of the van was their mom’s boyfriend, he is also expected to make it.

Union County School officials confirmed that all three children are students at Rock Rest Elementary.

Troopers do not believe Moss had drugs or alcohol in his system, but believe he was distracted - saying he never hit his brakes.

Troopers are still investigating, they plan to look at the computers that were in both vehicles to figure out how fast they were going.

Source :
Young boy in Union County crash passes away