Local News

E.E. Smith High students killed in Fayetteville car crash

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Tuesday, 14 October 2025

Written by Dasia Williams, CityView Today

Three students from E.E. Smith High School died last week when the car they were riding in ran off the road on Rosehill Road, Fayetteville police said. The fourth passenger, the driver, was airlifted in critical condition.
Police have identified one of the victims as Jai’hyon Lamont Elliot, 18, and the driver as Dymond N. Monroe, 21. The other two students, both 17, were identified by Cumberland County Schools as Trevor Merritt and Nicholas Williams.
Around 7:22 p.m. on Oct. 8, officers responded to the 2700 block of Rosehill Road after a single-vehicle crash, police said. The car veered off the road, struck a telephone pole, and then hit a tree.
Three passengers died at the scene, the statement said. Monroe was airlifted to UNC Medical Center in critical condition. Police are investigating the cause.
Cumberland County Schools released a statement Oct. 9 confirming all three victims attended E.E. Smith High School and were members of the school’s football team.
“We are deeply saddened by the tragic loss of three E.E. Smith High School students … our thoughts and prayers are with their families,” the district said. “The top priority of the E.E. Smith High School administration is to provide support to students, faculty and staff as they process this tragedy. The district’s Student Services team will be on-site today to offer counseling and emotional support.”
In a message the same day, Superintendent Eric Bracy expressed condolences and spoke to the “lasting impact” the students have left behind.
“From the four corners of Cumberland County and beyond, we join together to wrap our arms around the E.E. Smith community,” he said. “We stand with their families, loved ones, classmates, teammates and school family as they grieve this devastating loss.”
Because the students were part of the football program, the school district announced that South View High School’s homecoming game, originally scheduled for Friday, Oct. 10 and in which E.E. Smith was set to play, is postponed. A new date will be announced later.
Fayetteville Mayor Mitch Colvin, an alumnus of E.E. Smith, offered his condolences and encouragement for the families, students, and staff affected by the crash.
“Our community’s heart is broken. 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,” Colvin said in a statement.
The county school board also issued a statement following news of the wreck.
“The Cumberland County Board of Education extends its deepest condolences following the loss of three E.E. Smith High School seniors—young men whose energy, potential and friendships made a lasting mark on their school and community. Our hearts ache for their families and school community who are walking through this unimaginable time.”
The Fayetteville Police Department’s Traffic Unit is continuing the investigation into the crash. Police said more information will be released after next-of-kin notifications. Anyone with tips is asked to contact Officer C. Lewis at 910‑818‑1872.
CityView will continue to follow updates from the school district, police, and community as more information becomes available.
CityView Editor’s Note: This story was updated at 5 p.m. on Oct. 9 to include the correct identification of the driver of the vehicle after Fayetteville Police released additional information.

Government Watch: Fayetteville primary results; Consolidation of 911 center

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Tuesday, 14 October 2025

Written by Jami McLaughlin

The primary is over and now residents will watch for who will win seats for mayor and the nine districts on Nov. 4. Running for mayor will be current Mayor Mitch Colvin, who is seeking a fifth term, and Mayor Pro Tem Kathy Keefe Jensen, who has served on the council since 2015.
Candidates for the nine districts are as follows: District 1 - Stephon Ferguson and James L. Thomas III, District 2 - Malik Davis and Gail Morfesis, District 3 - Antonio Jones and Jeremy Wright, District 4 - DJ Haire and Stuart A. Collick, District 6 - Derrick Thompson and Kenneth E. Odegard II, District 7 - Brenda McNair and Kathy A. Greggs, District 8 - Rodney E. Garvin and Shaun McMillan and District 9 - Deno Hondros and Joe McGee. Current Councilwoman Lynne Bissette Greene is running unopposed for District 5.
For more information about candidates running for office this year, visit https://sites.google.com/faybiz.com/gfccandidatesforum2025/home.
Possible consolidation of the Joint 911 Call Center
On Oct. 9, Chief Freddy Johnson, head of the Fire Chiefs Association, presented recommendations of public safety agencies for consolidated 911 services to the Cumberland County Board of Commissioners.
Johnson urged the consolidation at the Oct. 9 meeting citing public safety benefits and operational efficiency. The consolidated center would be housed at the county’s current facility at 500 Executive Place and the city and county would share the operational costs equally. Johnson also said that in their proposal that no employees would lose their job as a result of the consolidation and that it would include a mental health partnership with Alliance Health. Mental health professionals would be used to assist with 911 calls.
There have been three failed attempts to consolidate since 2007 due to disagreements over governance and control between the city and the county according to Johnson. The proposal presented to the county on Oct. 9 had previously been presented to the Fayetteville City Council for their consideration and was also discussed, following a presentation by a group of public safety leaders at the Joint City-County Liaison Committee meeting on Sept. 15.
Currently, Cumberland County operates a consolidated emergency communications center that handles 911 calls for the Cumberland County Sheriff's Office, Hope Mills Police, Spring Lake Police, county fire departments and Cape Fear Valley EMS. The City of Fayetteville has its own 911 Communications Division, staffed 24/7 on the second floor of Fayetteville City Hall, which handles emergency and non-emergency calls within the city.
The proposed governance structure included staff members from Cumberland County, including the Sheriff’s Office and the Fire Chief Association, the City of Fayetteville, including the Police Chief and Fire Chief, the town managers from Spring Lake and Hope Mills, a licensed mental health professional from Alliance and the EMS director from Cape Fear Valley Health. However, the board asked that elected officials still lead the process.
The next step is for the governing bodies and staff at Cumberland County and the City of Fayetteville to reconvene for discussion. The county will work with the city for that future meeting date.
On Oct. 6, the Cumberland County Board of Commissioners approved economic development incentives of up to $363,500, paid over five years, for a steel fabrication plant, also known as the “Project Superman” proposed expansion.
Robert Van Geons, president and CEO of the Fayetteville-Cumberland Economic Development Corporation, asked for the funds to help create 42 full-time jobs in the county by 2029 with an average wage exceeding $66,700. Capital investment, including real and business equipment for this project, is expected to be $22 million.
The Fayetteville City Council approved an incentive grant of $327,487 for the project on Sept. 22.
About the Greater Fayetteville Chamber
Advocacy is a cornerstone of the Greater Fayetteville Chamber. Every week, the Chamber dedicates staff to attend City of Fayetteville and Cumberland County meetings as well as monitoring updates on the state and federal levels. We monitor legislation locally, statewide and federally to protect our community’s business interests. With 91% of U.S. adults recognizing a Chamber of Commerce's impact on growth, membership ensures a strong voice shaping policies, driving economic success and building a thriving business community—together. To learn more, visit www.faybiz.com or email jmclaughlin@faybiz.com.

(Photos: Current mayor Mitch Colvin, left, and Mayor Pro Tem Kathy Jensen, right, come out as the two top contenders for the Fayetteville Mayoral race after the Oct. 7 primary. The two will be on the ballot for the Nov. 4 election.)

FTCC tackles truck driver shortage with new training center

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Tuesday, 07 October 2025

Written by Jaclyn Shambaugh

The nation is facing a longstanding truck driver shortage, and Fayetteville Technical Community College is doing its part to tackle the problem in the Sandhills Region and across the state.
FTCC broke ground on Phase I of the Regional Supply Chain Management & Logistics Center on Sept. 15, celebrating the clearing of a 58-acre site on Old Raeford Road that will serve as the future home of the college’s truck driver training program and fleet maintenance technician program. The $21.2 million project will be built in two phases. Phase I consists of a 600-by-900-foot driving and maneuvering pad that will provide vital training space for students in the Commercial Driver’s License Program. The 13-acre pad will accommodate up to 14 tractor trailer trucks and include a gear shifting track and skid area. The first phase is expected to open in December 2025. The truck pad will provide vital training space for FTCC students, as well as CDL students from regional partners Bladen Community College and Robeson Community College, serving as a regional hub for training allowing all three colleges to expand enrollment for the trucking and supply chain sectors.
FTCC President Dr. Mark Sorrells said the new facility will reduce student waitlists and streamline the region’s workforce pipeline.
“The transportation industry urgently needs more qualified truck drivers to strengthen the supply chain for our state and nation,” Sorrells said. “This new facility will significantly expand training capacity across all three colleges, enabling us to produce more graduates to meet the growing demand for skilled professionals in the transportation sector.”
Phase II will focus on the construction of a 5,000-square-foot building to house classrooms, offices and a two-bay garage for the maintenance of tractors and trailers. The second phase will go out to bid in early 2026.
The construction project is made possible through $20.7 million in funding from the North Carolina General Assembly and a $500,000 grant from the Golden LEAF Foundation. To support the growth of the program, the Cannon Foundation, Inc. and the Charles A. Cannon Charitable Trust awarded FTCC over $400,000 to purchase trucks, equipment and supplies.
The transportation industry is experiencing an ongoing national truck driver shortage, with the American Trucking Association in August predicting a shortage of 115,000 drivers this year. FTCC’s current 10-week CDL program trains dozens of students each year with a 100-percent job placement rate; however, space and equipment limitations of the current training area on FTCC’s Fayetteville campus creates an enrollment waitlist that keeps students sidelined for as many as six months prior to enrollment.
Former Representative John Szoka and Chairman Kirk deViere of the Cumberland County Board of Commissioners, who was a member of the N.C. Senate when the project was funded, both offered remarks at the groundbreaking ceremony.
“Every single dime we ever voted for to come to FTCC has been put to great use, without a doubt,” Szoka said. “That didn’t start with me in the legislature. That started well before, with people bringing money to FTCC — not just because it’s our local community college and we love it, but because FTCC gets the job done.”
DeViere said the facility was the result of a “shared commitment” among the parties involved to prepare students for the workforce. “This state-of-the-art center will ensure that our students graduate, not just educated, but career ready and more importantly, job ready,” he said.

Health & Wellness: Body, soul: When weight loss leads to a different problem, surgery can help

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Tuesday, 07 October 2025

Written by Lia Tremblaya

So much of the work done at Cape Fear Valley Plastic Surgery is intended simply to help patients love what they see in the mirror. But not every transformation is purely cosmetic—many are rooted in a serious medical necessity .
That was the case for Meagan Deitz. Before her surgery, she had already experienced a major physical transformation: dropping from 280 pounds to 165.
That too was for more than cosmetic reasons. Deitz had decided to take action when her sister, Kayla, died at just 28 from a sudden cardiomyopathy.
“Heart issues run in my family, along with weight struggles,” she said. “I needed to do something.”
She focused on her diet and committed to a habit of 10,000 steps a day, and in just over a year, she had dropped more than 100 pounds.
But her lighter frame came with a new problem. The rapid weight loss had left her with loose skin, including an overhang of excess skin and fat called an abdominal pannus. She developed hidradenitis suppurativa (HS), a condition in which skin-to-skin friction can lead to painful bumps and sores that become infected. The wounds often reemerge after healing or don’t heal at all.
Deitz’s HS was about as bad as it gets: Stage 3, with deep wounds that had to be packed routinely to support healing and reduce pain. The discomfort interfered with her daily life, including time spent with her son, Lucas, who is now 5.
“It was the worst feeling,” she said. “I was super depressed all the time. I was not able to move around a whole lot, and I felt like I was missing out on a lot of my son’s life.”
After trying several medications with no real success, Deitz’s primary care provider suggested a panniculectomy—a surgery to remove the hanging skin and fat on her abdomen. That led her to Leif Nordberg, MD, a board-certified plastic surgeon whose expertise ranges from facial cosmetic surgery to post-mastectomy breast reconstruction and beyond.
“The entire experience with Dr. Nordberg was amazing,” she said. “His whole team, really. I felt happy to go there, and I never felt rushed. They took their time, even if I kept them for 10 extra minutes just asking questions.”
After some time to get the insurance authorizations settled, Deitz had the surgery in December of last year. She felt some trepidation going in, but by the end of that day, she was resting comfortably at home.
“I wouldn’t say it was pain-free,” she said, “but the recovery was significantly better than any other surgery I’ve ever had. Going home the same day, and being with my son and my husband instead of being stuck in the hospital, was amazing.”
By March, she was cleared to resume all physical activity, including a weightlifting routine to strengthen her new body. And she found it easier than ever to keep up with little Lucas.
“He is super energetic,” she said. “Before the surgery, I was barely able to lift him because of the pain. He’s so much happier now that I can do more things with him.”
And although her surgery was not purely for cosmetic reasons, Deitz is pleased with how she looks after a few months of healing.
“My biggest shock was the scar,” she said. “It looks amazing, considering the size of the incision I had to have. I’m so happy with it.”
Deitz said she was surprised to get a referral to plastic surgery, but the results have been beyond her expectations.
“Even my husband has noticed, my mood has been so much happier,” she said. “I want to live a long life for my son, and that is probably the biggest freedom the surgery has given me.”

(Photo courtesy of Cape Fear Valley Health)