4 found dead hours after single-car wreck in Cleveland County

SHELBY, N.C. — Authorities said four people were killed in Cleveland County when their car veered off a highway, went down an embankment and crashed.

Investigators said the victims may have been trapped inside the vehicle for hours overnight, until they were finally found Monday.

Witnesses found the victims just off of Metcalf Road and officials said two men were tossed from the car, which then landed on top of them.

All four people who were in the car died.

The vehicle broke apart when it collided with a tree and had to be removed in pieces.

The driver, Sarah Spencer, 26, had lived in Charlotte but recently had moved to Shelby.

“Yesterday, Spencer and three friends went to a river nearby for rafting and didn't return,” Spencer’s friend and roommate, Jennifer Davila, said. "I knew something was up when she didn't text me or come home, but sometimes roommates don't come home."

Their friends went looking for them Monday morning and one found the car off the road, surrounded by kudzu.

Troopers said the vehicle was going 15 mph over the speed limit when it went off the road, and that no one in the car was wearing a seat belt.

"It could have made a difference for the people in the back of the car,” Trooper John Burgin said.

Troopers said two of the men are about 34 years old and were from Shelby. Authorities are still trying to notify their relatives before releasing their names.

Check back with wsoctv.com for updates on this story.

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