Harnett County, NC (June 15, 2026) – Six young people were involved in a serious crash on Saturday, June 13, in Harnett County after a minivan overturned and caught fire along Hodges Chapel Road.
EMS crews responded to Hodges Chapel Road in the Banner Fire District after reports of a crash. When crews arrived, they found a minivan on its side in a cemetery and fully engulfed in flames. Firefighters quickly worked to extinguish the fire.
Authorities said no one was found inside or near the vehicle at the scene. Emergency crews later located six occupants, ages 16 to 22, in a nearby church parking lot. Five were taken to hospitals for treatment, while the sixth was evaluated at the scene and released to a parent.
Investigators said the minivan was traveling east on Hodges Chapel Road when the driver ran off the right side of the road near a curve, overcorrected, crossed the center line, and left the roadway on the left side. The vehicle entered a ditch, struck a culvert, hit a chain fence and cemetery posts, and also damaged a headstone before overturning several times and coming to rest on its side.
Officials said all occupants were able to escape the vehicle before it caught fire. Charges against the driver are pending as the investigation continues. Troopers are still reviewing the incident.
We are thinking of all those involved as they recover.
Why Overcorrection Can Lead to Serious Crashes
Overcorrection happens when a driver makes a sudden steering movement after drifting off the road or losing control. Instead of gradually steering back onto the roadway, the driver turns sharply, which can cause the vehicle to cross lanes, slide, or overturn.
Curved roads, high speeds, and narrow shoulders can make these situations especially dangerous. Larger vehicles like minivans are also more vulnerable to rollovers because of their higher center of gravity. Once a vehicle begins to slide sideways or leave the pavement, it can become difficult to regain control.
In many rollover crashes, secondary impacts with ditches, culverts, fences, or fixed objects increase the severity of the accident. Escaping the vehicle before a fire begins can make a major difference in survivability, which appears to have been the case in this incident.
