Police seek driver who hit motorcycle, then left
Published: Sun, Aug. 10, 2008 12:30AM
Modified Sun, Aug. 10, 2008 01:06AM
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closeNEWTON GROVE -- Jeffrey Price had planned a nice birthday celebration a week ago today.
He and his wife, Judy, and five of their friends hopped aboard motorcycles, heading from Goldsboro to Fayetteville.
Price wanted to eat at the Smokey Bones Barbeque & Grill on Skibo Road.
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"I like their ribs," Price said Friday in a phone interview from his home in Goldsboro.
After dinner, the group planned to ride over to M&M Leather Center before heading back to Goldsboro to finish off the day with a stop at an ice cream parlor.
But those plans went awry when the driver of a sport utility vehicle crossed the center line of U.S. 13 near Newton Grove, hitting Price's bike and causing the three other cyclists to veer off the road to keep from being hit.
The crash happened about 5:20 p.m. near the Maxton Bass Road intersection, according to a Highway Patrol report.
The driver of the Chevrolet sport utility vehicle kept going after hitting Price's bike, the report said.
"By the time I got my bike stopped, I just laid on the ground," said Price, who broke a foot and a hand.
His wife suffered road rash on her arms and legs, and one of her ankles was crushed, Price said. The other motorcycle operators and passengers also suffered injuries.
Five soldiers in the N.C. National Guard were heading home from a weekend drill in Goldsboro and saw what happened.
Col. Richard Leever, a chaplain who works at Fort Bragg; Sgt. Debra Bain; Sgt. Robert Whitfield; Staff Sgt. Cassandra Rogers; and Pfc. Diana Farnsworth are members of Company C, 230th Brigade Support Battalion, 30th Heavy Brigade Combat Team, according to a news release from the National Guard.
They were able to provide medical treatment until rescue workers arrived.
There also was help from other motorists, who followed the SUV to the Falcon community, where it was found abandoned, Price said. The SUV had a 30-day registration tag on it.
The driver, who has not been identified, is still being sought, the Highway Patrol said.
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