North Carolina High School Rocked by Tragic Accident

A North Carolina high school and community have felt extreme pain following an automobile accident that took the lives of three football players.

Three members of the E.E. Smith High School football team were killed when a 2024 Honda Civic hit a telephone pole, traveled down a sidewalk and struck a tree. A fourth person was taken by helicopter to the University of North Carolina Hospital with serious injuries.

The single-vehicle accident occurred in Fayetteville, North Carolina on Wednesday. The names of the victims have been released. The students who passed away were 18-year-old Jai-Hyon Elliot and 17-year-olds Trevor Merritt and Nicholas Williams. 

Dymond Monroe, the driver, was the lone survivor.

“It’s hard to really even comprehend,” Cumberland County Schools Associate Superintendent of Communications Lindsay Whitley told ABC11.com. “We’re saying we’re crying, we’re mourning, we’re hurting. And right now, we’re just present to support, to just be a listening ear and to just support everyone involved in this tragic situation.”

E.E. Smith was scheduled to face South View on Friday night, but that game has been postponed. This week was also Homecoming for the school.

The Golden Buffs are currently 2-3 on the year after falling to St. Pauls last week, 35-0. 

Williams, a senior, had played in two games according to MaxPreps, recording a 6-yard rush while attempting three passes. Merritt, also a senior, played in four games with 22 total tackles including six for loss and five quarterback sacks while Elliott also saw action in four games with 16 tackles.

“Our community’s heart is broken,” Fayetteville Mayer Mitch Colvin said. “These young men were part of the Golden Bulls family and of Fayetteville’s future, and their loss is felt across our city.

“We are keeping the injured individual in our prayers and ask our community to join us in lifting up all who are hurting.”