NTSB arrives in Charlotte to investigate I-485 crash that killed six
The National Transportation Safety Board will investigate Saturday’s deadly crash on Interstate 485 in Charlotte that killed six people, a spokesperson said.
The investigators will look into safety issues, including driver experience, truck parking on highway shoulders, and vehicle compatibility, said NTSB spokesperson Keith Holloway.
Investigators are expected to arrive in the Charlotte area on Tuesday, he said.
The crash occurred at 11:07 a.m. on the I-485 Outer Loop near Wilkinson Boulevard. A Honda CR-V moved from the center lane into the right lane, colliding with a Chrysler van in the right lane and sending both vehicles into a parked tractor trailer.
The crash killed the CR-V driver, Logan Paul Sauer, 16 of Mooresville; the 27-year-old van driver, Samuel Jacob Holmes; and van occupants Taylor Willis, 23; Brynlyn Holmes, 1; Addyson Holmes, 3; and Kamron Wood, 8, Master Trooper Robert Rogers said.
The only survivor in the two vehicles was Willis’ 16-year-old sister, who was taken to the hospital. The driver of the tractor trailer was uninjured.
A fundraiser posted on SpotFund to help the family said the injured girl is the sister of crash victim Taylor Willis. The fundraiser said the 1-year-old and 3-year-old were Willis’s children, and the 8-year-old was her cousin.
Willis’s mother, April Willis, also started a GoFundMe page, saying her 16-year-old daughter suffered a broken pelvic bone.
“We need all the help we can get for the funeral expenses,” the page said. “We have a long road ahead of us!! If you can please help or if you can’t just pray.”
Holloway said in an email that an NTSB report should be posted on the agency’s website in about 30 days.
Rogers, the master trooper with the N.C. Highway Patrol, said the department would be releasing its own crash report in the coming weeks.
Observer staff writer Joe Marusak contributed to this story.
This story was originally published July 29, 2025 at 12:12 PM.
