Man ejected, in critical condition:McClear airlifted from Bethany Road

By DUANE SHERRILL / Staff Reporter for the Southern Standard

State trooper Mike Tanner investigates the Tuesday night wreck on Bethany Road which resulted in Alex McClear being airlifted from the scene. (Duane Sherrill photo)

A local man was in critical condition at press time after he was thrown from his car as it rolled through a field off Bethany Road Tuesday evening.

The victim, Alex McClear, 20, was airlifted from the scene after suffering severe head injuries he sustained in the crash which happened around 5 p.m. Tuesday.

According to preliminary reports, McClear was traveling at a high speed on Bethany Road when he topped a hill on the wrong side of the road and met another car head on. Witnesses said McClear then swerved back into his lane to avoid impact but lost control, overcorrected, and again crossed the oncoming lane, missing the oncoming vehicle.

However, his vehicle flew off an embankment while sliding sideways, causing the car to overturn as it hurled through a fence, its momentum throwing McClear out of the still-rolling car. The victim was found lying near the upside down car, over a 100 feet from where he first entered the open field.

An investigation is continuing into the accident. Local residents complain speeding is common on the straight, but hilly, stretch of road which leads up to a major hairpin turn a few hundred yards from where the crash occurred.