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Virginia State Police have identified the two teenagers killed in an accident Wednesday morning in Bedford County.
17-year-old Jacob Baird of Thaxton and 16-year-old Katie Thurston of Vinton both died in the two-vehicle wreck on Route 24. The accident happened around 8:30 a.m. in the Goodview area of Bedford County.
Baird was driving a 2000 Ford Mustang on Route 653 when investigators say he tried to make a left turn onto Route 24, and then pulled the car in the path of a pickup truck.
Baird was wearing a seat belt. Thurston was in the back seat of the car, and was not wearing a seat belt. Baird and Thurston died before they could be taken to the hospital.
Two other passengers in the Ford Mustang, 18-year-old Gradon Graybill of Blue Ridge and 19-year-old Shawn Hall of Vinton, were taken to Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital for their injuries. Graybill is listed in good condition, and Hall is in fair condition. It's not clear if Graybill or Hall were wearing seat belts.
The driver of the pickup truck, 49-year-old William Orr of Vinton, suffered minor injuries but did not have to be taken to the hospital. He was wearing a seat belt.
The accident closed Route 24 near Mason Lane for about four hours Wednesday morning.
A Bedford County Schools spokesperson confirmed that all four teenagers involved in the wreck attended Staunton River High School. The spokesperson says Staunton River High had grief counselors at the school.
Just last month two Liberty High School students died in car crashes. And in January, two students from Liberty Christian Academy were killed in a wreck.
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2:02 p.m.: Virginia State Police have identified two people hurt Wednesday morning in an accident that killed two people on Route 24 in Bedford County.
Investigators have not released the names of the two people died.
18-year-old Gradon Graybill of Blue Ridge and 19-year-old Shawn Hall of Vinton were both taken to the hospital to be treated for their injuries.
Graybill and Hall were both in a Ford Mustang that crashed into a truck on Wednesday morning in the Goodview area.
The accident closed the road for about four hours.
Check back soon for more updates.
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12:10 p.m.: Route 24 in Bedford County is back open following a fatal accident Wednesday morning, according to the Virginia Department of Transportation.
The road had been closed since around 8:30 a.m. when two people were killed in a wreck in the Goodview area.
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11:05 a.m.: Students from Staunton River High School were involved in the wreck, according to a Bedford County Schools spokesperson.
The school has counselors on hand at the school.
The accident happened in the Goodview area around 8:30 a.m. on Route 24, about nine miles east of Vinton.
A Ford Mustang and a pickup truck were involved in the wreck. Investigators believe four people were inside the Ford Mustang, and one person was in the pickup truck.
A helicopter was seen leaving the highway.
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10:46 a.m.: Two people are dead following an accident on Route 24 in Bedford County, according to Virginia State Police spokesperson Robert Carpentieri.
Route 24 in the Goodview area is still closed in both directions.
Traffic on Route 24 West is being detoured onto Route 616. Route 24 East traffic is being detoured onto Route 653.
A Ford Mustang and a pickup truck were involved in the wreck.
A helicopter was seen leaving the highway.
The accident happened around 8:30 a.m.
Check back soon for more updates.
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9:54 a.m.: WDBJ7 has learned that someone was killed in a wreck Wednesday morning on Route 24 West in Bedford County.
The accident is in the Goodview area of Bedford County.
A helicopter was seen leaving the highway.
Traffic on Route 24 West is being detoured onto Route 616. Route 24 East traffic is being detoured onto Route 653.
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Both directions of traffic are closed on Route 24 in Bedford County.
An accident on Route 24 West in Bedford County has closed the eastbound and westbound lanes. The wreck is about nine miles east of Vinton.
Check back soon for more updates.