Two men were killed and two more injured when their car struck a tree and overturned in Norfolk (VA) early July 5.
The four were in a car that ran off the road at 4:15 a.m. July 5, The Virginian-Pilot reported. The auto ran off the road at Eilers and Helmick streets, in the Ben Moreell Community – one of the Lincoln Military Housing communities adjacent to Naval Station Norfolk.
The dead were identified as Jonathon Corey Steel, 19, of the 800 block of Southampton Avenue in Virginia Beach and Andrew Pullen, 21, of the 1300 block of Iron Leige Run, also in Virginia Beach. Pullen was driving the car, police said. The two injured men were not identified and were treated at an area hospital.
Authorities told The Virginian-Pilot that speeding and alcohol were likely contributing factors.
The Fourth of July weekend was a tragic one on Virginia roads. The Virginia State Police reported that they responded to 562 crashes over the holiday weekend, including nine crashes that resulted in 10 deaths statewide.
“We had hoped to continue the declining trend in traffic fatalities,” said Colonel W. Steven Flaherty, Virginia State Police Superintendent, in a news release. “Unfortunately, a lack of seat belts and alcohol were common factors in the nine traffic crashes investigated statewide. Now that we are well into the summer travel season, motorists must make safe and sober choices when behind the wheel.”