HUDSON––A Saturday afternoon crash proved fatal in Caldwell County.

According to Master Trooper Christopher Casey of the North Carolina State Highway Patrol, at about 3:10 p.m., NCSHP personnel responded to and investigated a fatal collision in Caldwell County on Hickory Nut Ridge Road, near Baton Church Road. A golf cart was attempting to turn left from a private driveway and pulled into the path of an eastbound 2018 Chevrolet “Malibu,” as Casey informs in a Sunday statement.

He adds that the driver of the golf cart, Roy Shane Epps, 58, of Granite Falls, was transported by medical helicopter to Atrium Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem. Once there, he succumbed to his injuries. His wife, Julie Safford Epps, 57, who was a passenger, sustained life-threatening injuries. She was transported to Atrium Health Carolinas Medical Center in Charlotte.

The driver of the Malibu, Cody Lyndon Pennell, 33, of Morganton, was not injured, as Casey reveals.

“The initial investigation does indicate impairment to be a contributing factor,” he adds. “Pennell was arrested and charged with driving while impaired. Additional charges are pending upon completion of the ongoing investigation and consultation with the Caldwell County District Attorney’s Office. During the on-scene investigation, the roadway was closed in the area for approximately one hour.”