Local

Truck with 2 local teens runs out of gas, gets hit by vehicle on the way to school

CATAWBA COUNTY, N.C. — A truck with two high school students ran out of gas and broke down on the way to school when it was hit by another pickup truck in Catawba County last Friday.

The wreck happened on Laney Road right around sunrise.

The teens were not hurt and instead helped the other driver and passenger get out of their truck by using a sledgehammer to break the window.

Channel 9′s Dave Faherty spoke with the teens and their family, who shared the video.

Will Hinson and his brother Devon Hinson had just backed out of the driveway of their home to get to Maiden High School when his pickup truck ran out of gas and broke down.

“I was just like this can’t be real … this can’t be serious,” said Will Hinson, who was driving the truck when it broke down.

The brothers, who are 16 and 15 years old, said they turned on their flashers and began to push the truck into a field across the street.

That’s when they saw another pickup truck coming towards them.

“We saw it and I started waving my hands in the air and tried to get him to slow down, and he just wasn’t slowing down,” said Devon Hinson.

That’s when another teen heading to school crashed into their pickup truck.

Their mother, Alicia Hinson, saw the scene unfold before her.

“I was watching live seeing the truck run into them and my heart just dropped. I knew that my boys had been run over. So I took off running out of the house. And as a mom watching that live ... It’s something you don’t want to see,” said Hinson.

Hinson shared the video as a reminder to other young drivers of the importance of making sure there is enough gas and the dangers of what can happen if a car breaks down.

In the video, you can see extensive damage to both trucks who were totaled in the crash. One of the trucks even ended up in the field after the impact.

Will Hinson said although he has only been driving for six months, what matters most to him is that he and his brother are safe.

“I can replace the truck … just can’t replace me and my brother,” said Hinson.

Faherty learned from Highway Patrol that there would likely be no charges in the case due to the foggy conditions and time of day of the crash.

They, too, say they are thankful no one was hurt.

(WATCH BELOW: I-40 crash involving box truck backs up Catawba County traffic for hours)