GASTON COUNTY, N.C. -- Ashley Griffin was on her way home for from college for spring break. Her uncle, the South Point Volunteer Fire Department chief, was in Belmont and had planned to meet with her during her break, but not like this.

"When I got the call, of course traffic was pretty heavy," said Chief Tommy Wilson.

But he made it to the crash point on South Point Road late Wednesday afternoon and started leading crews working to free the older man in a pickup truck, and the 18-year-old girl in a car. He didn't notice the girl at first.

"I didn't know it was a family member until I seen my sister come up," he said.

Then it struck him, that girl was his sister's granddaughter.

"My sister raised her since she was a little girl," he said. "It's kind of hard to explain. You go out to a bunch of them, but when it's a family member."

About four other fire and rescue workers on the scene knew the 18-year-old and knew she was in bad shape, says firefighter Pam Dymock.

"You want to help a little more even though you know there's not much more you can do," she said.

Griffin was hit head on by 60-year-old Ronnie Jones, the driver of this truck. A friend of his said she had seen him drinking all day and he had reportedly taken painkillers.

He died at the scene.

Ashley Griffin was going to be flown out.

"I was actually at the ambulance when they cancelled the helicopter," Dymock said.

They knew then that the college freshman wouldn't make it.