Commercial Vehicle Accident Injury Attorneys in Charlotte, NC

Charlotte, NC (May 9, 2025) – An auto crash with injuries occurred Friday morning in south Charlotte, disrupting traffic at the intersection of Sharon View Rd and Summerlake Rd. The incident was reported around 9:17 a.m. in a residential area known for its morning commuter activity and narrow roads.

Emergency responders were on the scene shortly after the crash to provide assistance. Medics and fire crews worked to assist those suffering from injuries after the collision. Authorities have not yet released additional details about the number of vehicles or individuals involved.

Traffic in the area was impacted as crews worked to clear the scene and ensure safety for all motorists. An investigation is ongoing to determine the circumstances that led to the collision.

Our thoughts are with everyone affected by this accident.

Residential Traffic Hazards in South Charlotte

Streets like Sharon View Rd are lined with homes, schools, and community parks, making them high-traffic zones during the morning and afternoon hours. While these areas are generally quieter than major highways, they pose unique risks due to frequent turns, narrow lanes, and limited visibility at intersections such as Summerlake Rd.

Accidents in suburban zones often result from sudden stops, distracted driving, or failing to yield the right of way. According to the North Carolina Department of Transportation, residential roads account for a growing percentage of injury crashes in urban counties, especially during school drop-off and morning commute periods.

The emotional and financial burden following a residential collision can be especially challenging for those injured, who may be dealing with unexpected medical costs and disruptions to daily routines. Victims are encouraged to document the scene and seek out both medical and legal guidance when navigating recovery and claims.

City planners and transportation officials in Charlotte continue to evaluate ways to reduce risk in neighborhood corridors. Proposed solutions include improved signage, speed calming measures, and increased patrol presence during peak hours to help prevent future incidents.

For more information or to receive help after an accident, contact Local Accident Reports.

It was a rocking evening that dumped over an inch of rain and over two dozen hail reports measuring over an inch in diameter.

SHELBY, N.C. — A severe weather outbreak on Thursday led to dozens of hail reports across the Charlotte area, with some areas seeing up to nearly 2-inch hail during the storms.

The first severe thunderstorm warning was issued shortly after 4 p.m. It wasn't long before hail reports followed in the foothills and areas west of Charlotte. Multiple warnings were labeled "considerable," which is when hail can reach the size of golf balls or the size of limes (approximately 2 inches).

Not everyone saw hail, but those who did may be calling their insurance companies. There were 33 official hail reports across North Carolina and South Carolina, with most falling west of I-77. The event lined up with the Storm Prediction Center's significant hail threat, which targeted areas west of Charlotte.

Hail size is compared to everyday objects and here are the largest hailstones that were reported.

Credit: WCNC CHARLOTTE

Hail is not an uncommon occurrence in the Carolinas, but widespread hail reports like this are not a regular thing. Since 1950, about 30% of large hailstones reported to the National Weather Service fell in May, which is the heart of hail season for the Carolinas.

A hail outbreak like yesterday is on brand. 30% of all of all the large hail that falls in the Carolinas falls in the Month of May! @wcnc pic.twitter.com/3So36k2lr3

— Chris Mulcahy (@YOURWEATHERMAN) May 9, 2025

Hail is most common when there is a single-cell thunderstorm. When multiple thunderstorms gather together, the environment is more conducive for damaging winds. Many of these storms that produced the largest hail were supercells. The same storm that caused the $5 million in damage in Rock Hill last April. These storms rotate and nearly 100 percent of the time produce hail and 30 percent can produce a tornado.

One more fact: The largest hail ever reported in the Carolinas was 4.5 inches in diameter. Also known as grapefruit size. This hail size has actually been recorded 17 times in the Carolinas including close to home in Burke, Catawba, Gaston and Rowan counties.

Contact Chris Mulcahy at [email protected] and follow him on Facebook, X, Instagram and TikTok.

For the latest breaking news, weather and traffic alerts that impact you from WCNC Charlotte, download the WCNC Charlotte mobile app and enable push notifications.

The company will invest more than $50 million over the next five years and plans to begin operations in early 2026. The new facility will manufacture bushings, a key component in high-voltage power transformers.

“Through these investments, we are not only strengthening our presence in the North American market but also laying the foundation for sustainable growth and the further development of the energy infrastructure in the region,” said Dr. Bahadir Basdere, CEO of Trench Group. “In doing so, we contribute to the stability and national security of the countries in North America.”

“Charlotte’s growing skilled workforce in key electric and engineering fields combined with its business-friendly climate offers HSP US the ideal environment as we expand our operations globally,” said Dr. Nils von Dietman, CEO of HSP US. “The proximity to our key customers also played a role.”

Trench Group GmbH, a global leader in the engineering and manufacturing of high-voltage power transmission components and systems based in Berlin, separated from Siemens Energy a year ago to become a standalone company.

The facility, located in Southwest Charlotte near Siemens Energy’s new advanced manufacturing facility, will create several job opportunities, including machinists, engineers and management, with an average wage of $77,315, above the MSA average.

“We are pleased to welcome HSP US to Charlotte,” said Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles. “This new high-tech facility further strengthens Charlotte’s status as a growing energy hub and will bring advanced manufacturing jobs to our city. This is a continuation of our city’s ongoing efforts to strengthen and build new relationships in Germany.”

“Mecklenburg County remains an economic engine in our state and region,” said Mecklenburg Board of County Commissioners Chair Mark Jerrell. “We are pleased HSP US recognizes the strength of our local workforce and is choosing to invest in our community and bring a variety of skilled jobs.”

Christopher Chung, CEO of the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina, said: “Foreign direct investment is a large contributor to North Carolina’s economy, and we welcome HSP US to the state. With the top business climate in the country, the largest manufacturing workforce in the Southeast, five top-tier research universities, and proximity to customers and supply chain components, North Carolina offers companies what they need to successfully expand their global footprint.”

This project was a collaborative effort between the City of Charlotte, Mecklenburg County, the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina and Duke Energy.

HSP will begin filling positions this fall and is in conversations with Central Piedmont Community College to create a customized workforce training and apprenticeship program.

"At Central Piedmont, we welcome the opportunity to work alongside industry leaders to design workforce training that leads directly to high-demand careers,” said Dr. Kandi Deitemeyer, president of Central Piedmont. “Our entire region benefits when employers invest in student success through hands-on learning and job placement. We see stronger talent pipelines, stronger communities, and a stronger economy. These partnerships meet today’s workforce needs and help shape the future of innovation and opportunity across the Charlotte region."

“Today’s announcement further cements the Charlotte Region as a global powerhouse, fueled by the strong presence of companies like HSP US,” said Gretchen Carson, director of business recruitment at the Charlotte Regional Business Alliance. “Germany leads the way in foreign direct investment in the region. With the world-class connectivity of Charlotte Douglas International Airport and a top-notch talent pool, we are certain HSP will find the competitive advantages it needs to create exciting new opportunities and drive innovation in Charlotte.”

The Charlotte-Mecklenburg area is home to over 1,000 foreign-owned companies, and Germany is the leader in investment. German companies employ more than 19,000 people in and around Charlotte.

Over the past two years, the City of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County have collaborated on multiple economic development projects, including the relocations and expansions of Siemens Energy, TTX, alpitronic Americas Inc., Albemarle Corp., and Solve Industrial Motion Group. With today’s announcement of HSP US LLC’s manufacturing location, the city and county have helped bring more than $508 million in capital investment and 1,535 new jobs.

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A Lifetime of Service: Bob Summey’s Legacy with Charlotte Fire

Only a couple of episodes are left until someone takes the coveted title as the next “American Idol,” but that whirlwind journey is over for Charlotte’s Josh King.

This season began with nearly 150 aspiring artists who got a ticket to Hollywood after auditions. Week after week, the local singer and musician continued to rise above the rest of the competition — making it all the way to Top 8.

But in an unfortunate twist of irony, his last performance to one of his favorite songs, “Home” by Michael Bublé, brought him back home in the “Judge’s Song Contest” in the last episode, which had fans praising him as a “class act” for urging judges to save contestant Mattie Pruitt before he was eliminated.

At the beginning of the competition, CharlotteFive chatted with Josh King about his musical background that got him on the show. Now, we’re continuing the conversation about his overall experience and what’s next for his music career.

(Note: This conversation has been edited for brevity and clarity.)

C5: In our previous interview, you talked about your musical background, why you decided to go on “American Idol” and said you were in for one of the most interesting and stressful rides of your life. Now that it’s concluded, how would you describe the experience overall?

Josh: “I think I described it in another interview as challenging, chaotic yet fun.”

C5: A few times you seem surprised to make it to the next round. What was going through your mind at the end when you were in the bottom two?

Josh: “There were like a couple things running through my head. Like, ‘OK you know there’s a chance they could save me again, but you know I doubt they would.’ At that point, I was kind of a bit sick of Hollywood, and I’m like, ‘You know what? I think Mattie could really benefit from being on the show longer than I could.’

Because, up to that point, there was like a list of accomplishments I wanted to kinda get on the show – like experience and things I want to do on the show, and I pretty much got all of that done pretty early on. I got to sing the songs I wanted to sing, I got to meet the people I wanted to meet, I got to get the experience I wanted. I got the challenges I wanted to complete.” ...

“I was able to meet my goals, and I felt that Mattie [Pruitt] has a lot of room to grow and that she could benefit more from just continuing on, whereas I was OK with going home at that point.”

C5: Which was your favorite performance and why?

Josh: “It depends on what type of performance style because I don’t really pick favorites. ‘All by Myself’ was like the first time I really got to open up, so in a way that was my favorite. … I was able to really internalize this song well. … It wasn’t my best vocal performance. I wouldn’t say that. But was it the performance where I was just truly in the moment, feeling the song? Yes.”

C5: Are there any performances you wish you could do over?

Josh: “‘Until I Found You’ from Hollywood Week. I wish I had three days to learn the song.”

C5: How would you say being on “American Idol” changed your life?

Josh: “I don’t know how to describe it, because it’s such a significant change, honestly. … It put me into a position where I could rapidly grow, rapidly learn, just push myself to my limits in a very short amount of time. On top of that, it’s also giving me the opportunity to meet everyone I did — contestants and crew, alike.” ...

“As it thins out and it gets narrowed down, you either really have to kind of lock-in on it and that’s all you think about or you know, it just gets harder. It’s not because the workload gets hard. … It’s just that it gets quiet and lonely very fast. … It just gets very quiet and I’m a very social person and I get my energy from other people around me and just having fun with them and so it definitely got a bit harder for me as the weeks progressed because of that.

“It definitely changed my life because it’s given me the opportunity just to be a part of it, and that’s my biggest takeaway from it is that I got to be a part of this.”

C5: How did you form such strong relationships with your fellow contestants? Is there anyone you’re especially close with?

Josh: “I guess we’re trauma bonded you could say … especially when it gets down to Top 24. The Top 24 is together for just so long. Like we’re together for like two months, three months straight. Then in a way, we’re practically living together, and so it really becomes like just one big family.

“We drive each other crazy at times but at the same time, we just really love each other. It was hard for me because my boys — Baylee [Littrell], Desmond [Roberts], Olivier [Bergeron] — went home, but I’ll get to see him again. Penny [Samar] and Grayson [Torrence] we had this, basically, a trio going on. Everything we did was just comedic as all get out.”

C5: How does the ‘Idol’ stage compare to singing in public to strangers in an airport, something you mentioned you’ve done several times as a volunteer pianist at Charlotte Douglas before going on the show?

Josh: “One — you’re playing for people that are not really there to see music. They’re just passing through … You’re just background noise. They’re not there to see you. You are, as I like to say, just a background character. … Whereas you’re on ‘American Idol,’ suddenly people are there to watch what you do. They want to see what you pull out next and they watch your journey from the very beginning to see how the judges and the show challenge you and how you will rise to those challenges. ...

“Rehearsing on stage without a crowd is way different than actually performing on the stage with a crowd. The crowd completely changes everything and it changes the energy … It really changes it, and it changes it in a good way, and so none of my rehearsals were ever like the way I performed my songs.”

C5: What’s next for you? Has this experience changed your plans for what you might do with music?

Josh: “Well, I’ll figure it out. I definitely wanna start writing more songs. I wanna do more collaborations, and I’m gonna see about meeting up with some people that I met during Hollywood Week that are local to me. I might see about maybe doing a duet with Grayson because we could kill like one of those duet songs.

“I definitely want to record. I’ve thought about a bunch of things, like maybe I can get on a tour for another musician or artist. Like maybe if I ever get to, I’d love to open for a bigger act. There are a lot of things I could do. It’s one of those things where we’ll have to see where this kind of takes me.”

C5: At the beginning of the season, you were saying how shocked you were to even make it past your audition. So how does it feel to look back making it to the top 8? Did you think that you would make it as far as you did?

Josh: “Absolutely not. When they announced that I was eliminated, it hits you. This whole wave just hits you and you realize, ‘How did I make it this far?’ I’m very grateful to everybody that gave me this chance and that got me this far, but I’m like, it’s really crazy that I did because I never thought I would ever just make it. …

“Every single round like I was like, ‘Now I’m gonna go home. That wasn’t my greatest performance. Everybody else has stronger performances. Now I’m going home.’ And then suddenly, they said, ‘Oh Josh King’ and I’m like, ‘What?’ ...

“I still haven’t been able to really wrap my head around it, but at the end of the day, I’m thankful to everyone who voted for me and gave me that chance to just be there in the moment and live it … What made this so great to me was for time, I got to perform in front of thousands and millions of people and I got to just have fun. If I’m having fun, so is the audience.

“For a moment, I finally got to do what I love again and I love performing. I used to do festivals and stuff with my mentor as a kid and it felt very much like that. I know coming out of this, this is what I wanna do with my life. This is where I belong and I hope that this experience it’s just one step closer to achieving that goal of doing what I love.”

The Charlotte Observer

Chyna Blackmon is a service journalism reporter for The Charlotte Observer. A native of the Carolinas, she grew up in Columbia, SC, and graduated from Queens University of Charlotte. She’s also worked in local television news in Charlotte, NC, and Richmond, VA. Support my work with a digital subscription

The video showed someone pouring a flammable liquid on an opossum before setting it on fire.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A Mint Hill man was arrested following the investigation of a disturbing viral video that showed an opossum being set on fire, according to sheriff's office records.

Cameron Bernard Torrence was taken into custody on May 8 and faces multiple charges, including instigating cruelty to animals, fleeing and eluding arrest and probation violation.

Torrence "unlawfully and willfully did instigate or promote cruelty to animals by participating in the burning of live opossum and posting video of the act to Facebook," according to a warrant obtained by WCNC Charlotte on Friday. Torrence appeared in court virtually on Friday and was given a $10,000 secured bond. His next hearing is scheduled for Aug. 1 on the animal cruelty charge.

The case began drawing attention after the video was shared on social media, prompting outrage from animal rights advocates and community members. Wildlife officials launched an investigation shortly after the footage surfaced online.

The North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission says it has identified multiple persons of interest in connection with a viral video of an opossum that was burned alive in an apparent case of animal cruelty.

Wildlife officials confirmed last week that a second video was posted, but it's unclear if it was related to the first video that sparked outrage on social media. The first video, which started circulating online last week, showed someone pouring a flammable liquid on an opossum before setting it on fire. The incident generated significant public outrage, with WCNC Charlotte receiving numerous calls and emails from concerned citizens.

"We're still looking at all possible avenues in the case," Officer Kristofer Blankenship said. "There are multiple persons of interest in the case and we're looking for new leads."

Lt. Forrest Orr with NCWRC said the agency has investigated similar incidents in the past, but it isn't something they encounter often. Investigators are now working to determine when and where both videos were taken.

"Everybody has their motives to why they do this and it's hard to get in somebody's mind and what they're thinking when they do something like this," Orr said.

Anyone with information about this case or any other instance of the mistreatment of wildlife is encouraged to all the NC WILDTIP hotline at 1-855-WILDTIP. Information can also be texted in by using the keyword WILDTIP to 847411.

For the latest breaking news, weather and traffic alerts that impact you from WCNC Charlotte, download the WCNC Charlotte mobile app and enable push notifications.