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Lexington Man Charged in Concrete Slab Wreck on I-85

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LEXINGTON, N.C. (WGHP)— The Lexington man airlifted after a large, heavy concrete slab crushed his truck Tuesday is now facing charges in connection with the wreck.



Troopers charged Justin “Brent” Carrick, 26, with failure to reduce speed to avoid a crash and having an expired plate on his trailer.



The driver of a car carrier involved in the wreck, Steven Grantham from Georgia, also was charged with failure to reduce speed to avoid a collision.



News partner WSOC-TV reported Carrick’s truck ran into the back of a wide-load trailer carrying a 65,000-pound concrete slab on Interstate 85 in Concord around noon Tuesday.



After Carrick’s truck hit the trailer, two semi-trucks then slammed into his vehicle in a chain reaction crash, troopers told WSOC. The driver of the truck carrying the concrete slab has not been charged.



Zach Yountz, 22, one of two other Tri-Co Electric employees in Carrick’s truck, said he saw a strap holding the concrete break right in front of him.



“I never would have thought the concrete was going to come off the truck. It was like something from a movie. I can remember things flying around, glass. We had tools in the trucks, and they were flopping around. It was rough,” Yountz said.



Yountz said the back door wouldn’t open, and his co-worker, Gary Winebarger, had to help get Yountz out. Both then turned their concerns to Brent, who was pinned in the truck for nearly two hours.



“I was not too worried about myself, and Gary was not, either. We were just both scared for Brent. There wasn’t anything we could do to get him out,” Yountz said.



Carrick was airlifted to a Charlotte hospital and suffered a broken leg, along with some cuts and bruises. Carrick had surgery Wednesday and now is in good condition.



Tuesday’s wreck was nowhere near the first incident Carrick has suffered from. Brent survived a head-on collision back in 2008, and in January he fell 30 feet while trimming trees. The January incident broke his back and both legs and left him in a coma for three weeks.



Brent has been dealing with setbacks since shortly after he was born. Brent survived life-threatening cancer at the age of one.



Brent’s grandfather, Charles Carrick, said all these incidents have both been tough to deal with and a miracle.



“I think it makes you appreciate things a little more. You never know what’s going to happen tomorrow,” Charles said.

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