By Nathan Hardin
nhardin@salisburypost.com
ROCKWELL — The driver of a Toyota pickup who was airlifted after a collision on U.S. 52 this morning is listed in fair condition.
North Carolina State Highway Patrol Trooper Chris Rogers said 17-year-old Paul “Nick” Bare was taken by helicopter to Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem after emergency crews rescued him from under his truck, which was pinned against a utility pole.
His girlfriend, 15-year-old Kendall Brown, was listed in good condition Friday afternoon at Carolinas Medical Center-NorthEast.
Thai Yang, the driver of another vehicle, was taken by ambulance to an area hospital but was not listed at NorthEast or Rowan Regional Medical Center.
Rogers said Bare, of Red Road, picked up Brown at her home on Vance Allen Avenue about 7:20 a.m. to go to school.
As Bare was leaving, he turned left onto U.S. 52 and was hit on the left side by a Honda Pilot traveling east.
The impact spun Bare’s small gray Toyota pickup into a nearby yard and the truck flipped onto its side against the pole.
Rogers said Bare was partially out of the vehicle and was pinned underneath the truck.
“The pole saved his life,” Rogers said.
Yang, of Albemarle, was driving the Honda Pilot. The SUV came to a stop in the same yard on U.S. 52.
Emergency crews landed a helicopter in a nearby field and transported Bare to Winston-Salem.