GUILFORD COUNTY, N.C. — Three people died in a crash, including a Greensboro firefighter, a woman, and a teenager.
Investigators said 16-year-old Alexio Lattero from Gibsonville hydroplaned, crossing the centerline before running into a Greensboro firefighter and his wife.
During the time of the crash, Lattero's sister, 26-year-old Anna Lattero, and his 15-year-old close female friend were passengers in the car.
Alexio went to the hospital with broken ribs, a broken collar bone, a laceration to his head, and a punctured lung.
“He’s devastated. He loves his sister. A friend and other people were killed in the accident, it’s obviously very devastating, it was devastating news to him,” explained a family friend.
Alexio is also a volunteer firefighter in Gibsonville.
This is still a very fresh, very emotional situation for the family but they said the crash happened because of the rainy road conditions on Saturday. The State Highway Patrol agrees.
Highway Patrol released a statement Monday saying the leading cause of the crash was exceeding a safe speed on wet roads.
WFMY News 2's Amber Lake sat down with a friend of the Lattero family, Ciara Hinson.
Hinson said that in the Dodge Charger Alexio drove were his 26-year-old sister Anna and a close female friend of five years inside.
They both died in the crash.
A representative for the Lattero family said Alexio and Anna were close and described them being as ‘thick as thieves."
“He definitely looked up to Anna, and then Anna always was very protective of Alexio and has been. So, it was just kind of nice to see that bond, and then once Alexio became a teenager, there was definitely a stronger bond because they were able to go do things together. That’s why she was with them because they always did everything together. Their late-night Waffle House trips after they got off work together, and things like that, working in the restaurant, he doesn’t work an 8 to 5 so you have a 16-year-old kid who’s getting off at 11 o’clock after he’s been just working since 10 a.m. So, it was a good relationship they were very very tight. They helped each other through a lot of things,” Hinson explained.
The family said Alexio is a very responsible individual.
Hinson said with him being around fire calls every day, he always took the safety of others into consideration.
“The biggest concern is getting Alexio home which will take some time given his injuries and everything," Hinson said. "They are just coping as best as anybody can who has lost a child. It's going to be a very long road to recovery for all the families involved.”
Kenny Apple is the fire chief of District 28 in Gibsonville - where Alexio volunteers as a firefighter.
"He is well beyond his years. He could run that restaurant by himself if he wanted to. He really gets along with the other junior firefighters here because everybody loves him, everybody loves him in the community,” Apple said.
Apple said he's known Alexio for years and considers him a great driver and responsible teen.
"I'm hoping it's an eye-opener or something, that can happen to anyone no matter what age they are," Apple expressed. "We don't think speed or things like that were really involved, because Alexio is a really good driver and I've seen that myself."
Highway Patrol charged Alexio with several misdemeanors, including three counts of death by motor vehicle.
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