Fatal Sanford Crash Claims Teenager

A 17-year-old Lee County High School student suffered fatal personal injuries in a head-on collision on U.S. Highway 1 in southwestern Sanford on May 14.

Lee High Principal Greg Batten confirmed that Josh Britt was killed in the crash. Batten said that Britt was a member of the varsity football team and described him as a “very popular student.” He called the accident a “tragedy for the LCHS community.”

According to North Carolina state troopers, the accident occurred around 11 p.m. Further details have yet to be released.

Britt is the eighth teen traffic fatality in the region within the past six weeks.

On March 29, two West Johnston High School students, 18-year-old Christopher Paul Kosmos and 16-year-old Alissa Chenette, were killed in a crash. On April 19, a Western Harnett High School student, 16-year-old Elizabeth Ann Harris, died in a wreck. On April 24, two Hoke County High School students, 18-year-old Kaleb Valliant and 18-year-old Thadius Markle, were killed in an accident. On April 28, a South Johnston High School student, 16-year-old Jesse Ferrell, died in an accident. And on May 1, a Southern Nash High School student, 17-year-old Michael Turner Jr., died in a wreck.

Within the past four years, the North Carolina Highway Patrol has investigated accidents in which 680 teenagers have died.