A 24-year-old woman has been charged after a collision pushed a vehicle off the road and into three little girls operating a lemonade stand.
The accident occurred around 1:20 p.m. Tuesday, just south of Morganton. According to the North Carolina State Highway Patrol, Haley Erin McCorkle of Hickory attempted to turn left out of a driveway when she collided with an approaching Nissan Altima.
The accident knocked the Nissan off the road and into a front yard, where three children, aged 7, 8, and 9, were setting up a lemonade stand for the afternoon. All three were badly injured and taken to local hospitals. Two were airlifted and the third was transported by ambulance.
The incident caused no injuries to any of the drivers involved. McCorkle is now facing charges for failing to cede the right of way, which resulted in significant bodily injury. Troopers said there’s no evidence that speed or impairment played a part in the incident.
According to family relatives of the injured girls, the incident occurred in an instant.
“I was right there, and it just happened so fast,” said Elizabeth, one of the girls’ sisters. “I just ran and got my mom.”
The girls’ parents described the sight as both horrifying and upsetting. One father stated that he was traumatized after witnessing what happened to the children.
“Just very traumatized to see something like that,” he told me.
Despite the anguish, the families expressed gratitude that it wasn’t worse.
“Be more careful, be more mindful that there are children out of school for the summer, and just try to pay more attention,” said the mother of one of the young girls. “I cannot blame anyone for the accident. Accidents happen. However, I was upset about it. I’ve just needed to pray about it.”
The route was stopped for approximately two hours while troopers investigated.
Reference: Driver arrested after crash injures 3 children at lemonade stand in North Carolina