11-year-old dies after being hit by SUV during trunk-or-treat at NC church, family says
An 11-year-old celebrating Halloween at a church event died after a driver hit him on a North Carolina road, his family says.
Noah Chambers and other kids were crossing a street in the town of Oak Ridge when a Jeep SUV struck him on Friday night, the N.C. State Highway Patrol told WGHP and other news outlets.
The boy was attending Bethel United Methodist Church’s trunk-or-treat, an event during which participants hand out candy to children from decorated parked cars, WXII reports. The church is roughly 18 miles northeast of Winston-Salem.
Noah was rushed to a nearby hospital in critical condition, according to WGHP.
The 11-year-old’s father says his “son was pronounced brain dead” and died Sunday afternoon, WFMY reports.
“Thank you to everybody that reached out and show support, and showed you cared,” Robert Chambers told the station. “It really shows the movement of God that people are out there reaching out.”
A GoFundMe page that says it’s raising money for Noah’s “medical and funeral costs” had received more than $12,000 in donations as of Monday afternoon.
The child was a sixth-grade student at Rockingham County Middle School, which planned to offer crisis counseling on Monday, according to the campus’ Facebook post.
“We are heartbroken, and we will miss Noah so very much,” the school wrote.
The tragedy came after state troopers last week on Twitter encouraged drivers to “use extra caution and keep an eye out for trick-or-treaters.”
Officials say charges haven’t been filed against the driver who hit Noah, WXII reports. The person behind the wheel wasn’t “speeding or impaired,” according to the station.
This story was originally published November 4, 2019 at 12:44 PM with the headline "11-year-old dies after being hit by SUV during trunk-or-treat at NC church, family says."
