A severely damaged Dodge Challenger involved in Thursday’s wreck sits on the back of a transporter. Both occupants were transported to Vidant Medical Center with serious injuries Photo by Catherine Hardee / Neuse News

Despite the fact that the Falling Creek Service Center remains closed while cleaning up and waiting for power to be restored following Tuesday’s fire, the location was again a center of first responder activity following a serious accident on U.S. 70 West Thursday afternoon.

Trooper Fowler with the State Highway Patrol said a late model Dodge Challenger and a dump truck belonging to Jasper Jones Trucking were traveling west on U.S. 70 when the dump truck rear-ended the car.

Troopers were still working to reconstruct the exact events of the accident, he said. No charges had been filed, pending further investigation. The driver and passenger of the Challenger were transported to Vidant Medical Center by Lenoir County EMS, Fowler said.

Employees of Maready Tire and Falling Creek Service Station, who were working on cleanup and open for business despite the lack of power following Tuesday’s fire, said it seemed the Challenger was slowing down to turn into the station. Dwayne Strickland said the sound of the collision was “like a bomb going off.” The impact of the crash pushed both vehicles further down the road before they came to a stop, he said.

According to J.L. Daughety, owner of Falling Creek Service Center, the driver of the Challenger was Leslie Creech, a regular customer of his store who lives nearby. The passenger was Creech’s grandson.

Daughety said he was hoping to hear an update soon about their condition, which he said was critical according to an EMT at the scene.