A sport utility vehicle reported to authorities for erratic driving was involved in a head-on collision on U.S. 52 moments after passing a Rowan County Sheriff’s deputy Friday afternoon.
The N.C. Highway Patrol said someone near the Rowan and Stanly county line reported the driver of a Chevrolet TrailerBlazer was being reckless about 2:45 p.m. Just as the call was being relayed to authorities, a deputy noticed the northbound SUV on U.S. 52 and tried to stop it. The SUV crossed the center line and hit an oncoming vehicle. The accident occurred on U.S. 52, near Sides Road, just outside of Rockwell, leading to a traffic detour around the crash scene.
The driver of the TrailBlazer reportedly had a medical condition leading to the loss of control, N.C. Highway Patrol reported.
Four people were injured in the collision, including two children, and they were taken to Carolinas Medical Center-NorthEast in Concord.
The driver of the SUV had to be freed from the wreckage. He was identified as Danny Boliver Coggins, 63, of Mount Gilead. Authorities said Coggins’ SUV hit a couple of mailboxes before stopping.
Lee Brevard Readling, 43, of Norwood, was driving the other vehicle, a Chevrolet Avalanche and heading south. Officials said two children were in Readling’s vehicle, but their identities were not given.
Emergency communications initially had reported the crash happened during a police chase.