Hardee’s Eatery crash: Two brothers killed as car slams into North Carolina restaurant

Two brothers lost their lives after an SUV crashed into a Hardee's restaurant in North Carolina. The authorities, who described the incident as a single-vehicle crash, said that the brothers were having breakfast inside the restaurant.

The incident took place earlier this week, when a Lincoln Aviator crashed into the North Carolina eatery, killing Christopher Ruffin, 58, and Clay Ruffin, 62. The restaurant is located on Forest Hills Road in Wilson, 40 miles east of Raleigh, North Carolina.

Christopher Ruffin was pronounced dead at the scene, while the older brother Clay Ruffin succumbed to his injuries at the ECU Health Medical Center in Greenville.

An eyewitness at the scene, identified as Gabriela Palacios Alonzo, told local news station WRAL that she saw the two brothers on the sidewalk in a "bad state."

Reportedly, Alonzo was in the drive-thru when she heard Hardee's employee scream. To find out what happened, she went around to see the victims lying on the sidewalk.

Photos from the scene of the incident showed the silver sports utility vehicle crashing into the North Carolina restaurant. In some of the images, the car has gone through the front windows, resting on piles of broken glass and window frames.

The severity of the crash also caused injuries to one other person at the scene. However, since the wounds were not that severe, they only required medical aid by emergency personnel, according to Sgt. Eric Mclnery.

The customer's identity was not revealed by the police. However, an employee of the North Carolina restaurant speaking to WRAL stated that it was a young boy who was struck by the out-of-control silver SUV. It all happened when the kid's dad was in the restroom.

"When [the father] came out of the bathroom and went through all the glass, he found and pulled the boy from underneath the car. The little boy was screaming and hollering because he was scared and had cuts on the top of his head."

A Hardee’s employee said the young boy suffered cuts to his head after ending up underneath the SUV. The concerned restaurant employee informed WRAL that the young kid sustained injuries to his head after getting struck by the car.

The driver of the car has been identified as Jesse Lawrence, 78, who was treated at Wilson Medical Center and later released, according to the police. Lawrence is also from Wilson.

The police are still investigating the matter.

As of Monday morning, the police have not filed any charges against the driver Lawrence.