2 killed in fatal dirt bike crash in Wilkes County, authorities say

PURLEAR, N.C. (WGHP) — Both drivers were killed in a dirt bike crash in Wilkes County early Saturday morning, the North Carolina State Highway Patrol reported.

On Saturday around midnight, the NCSHP responded to a fatal crash in Wilkes County on Shingle Gap Road near CC Hayes Road. A Honda dirt birt bike traveling north on Shingle Gap Road collided head-on with a southbound Suzuki dirt bike in the center of the roadway.

The driver of the Honda, Matthew Dean Blankenship, 21, of Ferguson, died at the scene.

The driver of the Suzuki, Orin Thomas Harless, 30, of Purlear, died at the scene.

NCSHP reported that the initial investigation revealed neither speed nor impairment were factors in the crash. NCSHP also reported both drivers allegedly were not wearing helmets.

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