Cerro Gordo man killed in crash near his home

By DEUCE NIVEN

    A passenger in a pick-up truck that left the roadway and slammed into a tree died here early Monday, Assistant Columbus County Coroner William Hannah said.
    Harry Chayson “Chase” Williamson, 21, was “almost in front of his house” when he died in the 2 a.m. crash, Hannah said.
    Williamson was “still buckled up” in his seat belt, and died of multiple trauma in the crash that demolished the 1997 Chevrolet pickup, Hannah said.
    Brian Keith Strickland, 24, of McNeil Road in Fair Bluff, was at the wheel of the truck when it drifted off of the right side of NC 242 near Princess Ann Road, Trooper K. K. Conner of the North Carolina Highway Patrol said.
    After coming back on the highway, the truck went off the left shoulder, struck a ditch embankment, and then hit a tree, Conner said.
    EMS workers said Strickland was hanging from the back window of his truck when they arrived, Conner said.
    Strickland was seriously hurt, and taken from the scene by helicopter to New Hanover Regional Medical Center in Wilmington, Parrish said.
    An investigation into the crash is ongoing, Conner said.