Police identify drivers killed after dump trucks collide head-on in west Charlotte

CHARLOTTE — Two men were killed when two dump trucks collided head-on Wednesday afternoon along a west Charlotte road.

The crash happened around 1:15 p.m. on Moores Chapel Road near Wilkinson Boulevard.

According to police, two dump trucks traveling on the road collided head-on, causing one of the trucks to run off the road and catch fire.

Crews found the driver of a 2017 Kenilworth dump truck, Darius Lashawn Sweezy, 26, outside of the truck. The driver of a 2006 Mack dump truck, Donald G. Burnette, 66, was thrown from the vehicle by the force of the impact, police said.

Both men were pronounced dead at the scene.

Investigators said that Burnette was heading north on Moores Chapel Road and ran off the roadway, overcorrected, crossed the centerline and began to slide sideways.

Sweezy was driving south when he tried to avoid the oncoming dump truck and drove off the road slightly to his right.

The force of the impact between the empty Mack truck and the fully loaded Kenilworth truck spun the Mack, ejecting Burnette and caused the engine and transmission to separate from the vehicle, investigators said.

The collision caused the Kenilworth truck to continue off the road to the right and down an embankment where it caught on fire.

Burnette failed to stay in his lane, which was the primary contributing factor in the crash, police said.

Impairment is not suspected for either driver, but test results are pending.

Chopper 9 Skyzoom flew over the scene and could see one of the trucks was in a field next to the road and had severe fire damage. The front end of the other truck appeared to be smashed in.

Police said there was also a large amount of oil spilled during the wreck and with a creek and the Catawba River nearby, a member of the city’s water quality department was called out of an abundance of caution.

According to police, this is the eighth fatal accident in Charlotte since Friday.

“We’re asking all of our citizens and neighbors to think of that, be mindful of that, be careful when you’re out they’re operating in these roadways,” CMPD Lt. Stephen Fischbach said.

Moores Chapel Road was shut down between Wilkinson Boulevard and Performance Road while detectives investigated the scene.

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