A fiery crash in North Carolina killed two Oglethorpe County High School students last week, according to media reports and a GoFundMe page.
Landon and Rylan Ellenberg, both 17, were two members of a set of triplets who were all in their family's vehicle during the March 13 crash, according to a GoFundMe page. The crash killed both of them, but their two sisters and parents survived the incident.
North Carolina State Highway Patrol told the Athens Banner-Herald that the three-vehicle crash took place about 8:15 p.m. along U.S. 221 in Rutherford County. The third triplet, Roma, their older sister, Sienna, and their parents, Mark and Thea Ellenberg, survived without serious injuries.
Credit: GoFundMe
Credit: GoFundMe
The three vehicles were all headed northbound when one slowed to make a turn, the newspaper reported. The Ellenbergs’ van rear-ended that vehicle, causing the van to stop in the middle of the highway, troopers said. The van was then hit by a Dodge Ram 1500, with both vehicles becoming engulfed in flames.
The Ellenberg parents were in the front seats of the van, the sisters were in the second row and Landon and Rylan were in the third row, troopers told the Banner-Herald. One brother died at the scene, while the other died at a hospital.
No other information was released on the other people involved in the wreck. AJC.com has reached out to the North Carolina State Highway Patrol for more details.
The triplets were juniors at Oglethorpe High, Superintendent Beverly Levine told the newspaper.
“Our hearts ache for the Ellenberg family as they deal with this tragedy,” she said in a statement. “Landon and Rylan will be greatly missed. I had the opportunity to be their principal at the middle school. I’ve watched them grow up. They were wonderful kids with a wonderful family. It’s a huge tragedy for our community.”
The GoFundMe page, which had raised more than $38,000 as of Thursday afternoon, said the surviving family members sustained non-life-threatening injuries, which included Thea having third-degree burns on her arms.
“This money will go directly to their family to help cover unexpected funeral and medical expenses, plus replacing their vehicle,” the page said.
The family lived outside of Winterville and Mark works at the University of Georgia, the Banner-Herald reported. He's the Director of the Office of Technology and Instructional Services within the College of Family and Consumer Sciences.
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