A high school student died when she was thrown from a car during a crash in Upper Marlboro, Maryland, Tuesday morning, and the teenage driver of the car was hospitalized, police say.
An 18-year-old man behind the wheel of a BMW was driving at an extremely high rate of speed on Ritchie Marlboro Road when the car crashed into the back of a landscaping truck near Dunsmore Terrace about 9 a.m. according to Prince George's County police.
The impact of the crash crushed the back of the truck's trailer. A side door from the BMW could be seen embedded into the back of the landscaping trailer.
The BMW continued moving for about 100 yards, and both the driver and passenger were thrown from the car, police said
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Cayliy Haygood, the 18-year-old woman who was the passenger, died on impact at the scene of the crash, police said. The driver is in the hospital and he is stable, according to police.
Both teens are students at nearby Wise High School, school officials confirmed.
Jennifer Rios was inside her home with a friend, a nurse practitioner, when they heard the crash.
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“The nurse practitioner and I then ran outside and then we went straight to the children or the people involved, I should say, and then we tried to help as much as we could”.
Rios said she's been in combat with the Army and she knew immediately there was little she could do.
Another neighbor, who also heard the crash, said when she went to see what happened it was the sounds that caught her attention.
“Yeah, I heard the screaming and crying when they announced … the deceased person and they put the white blanket over the person's body," Dahrisha Hannah said.
One witness said drivers are known to speed down that road, and the area is dangerous despite a stoplight and speed camera installed nearby.
The head of the landscaping crew said they were not in or near the truck at the time.
The names of the two teenagers have not been shared.
It's the second tragedy to shake the Wise High School community this month.
Michael Nwaulu, 17, was shot and killed in an unincorporated section of Upper Marlboro on March 2, police said. He was also a student at Wise.
Grief counselors and psychologists will be on hand at the school Wednesday to support the community.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
