People in Johnston County are coming together to confront the problem of deadly car accidents among teens.
 
More than one hundred people gathered Thursday night for a community forum to discuss solutions.
 
Johnston County had the highest number of teen crash fatalities in the state in 2007, with 11 drivers and passengers aged 15-19 losing their lives.
 
“It was not meant for us to bury our kids, our kids are supposed to bury us,” said County Commissioner Wade Stewart, whose 17-year-old son died in a car accident in 1992.
 
Christy Baker lost her son in a crash eight weeks ago. She is urging parents and teens to work together to make sure young people have more experience behind the wheel before they are out on the roads.
 
“They’re with a lethal weapon when they sit behind a wheel of a car,” Baker said. “When a teenager goes off the road, that teenager doesn’t know how to correct it to get back on the road.”
 
The crowd also discussed the dangers of some Johnston County roads. Many rural roadways do not have shoulders, and can be difficult to maneuver after-dark.
 
County leaders are asking people to volunteer for work groups to tackle the issue in coming months.  Volunteers will be divided into citizen, teenager, law enforcement, infrastructure, and education input groups, and make recommendations to help reduce teen car crashes.