Community in Mourning

CLEVELAND, N.C. — In the days since a deadly crash on Amity Hill Road, the impact has reached far beyond the stretch of pavement where two young lives were lost.

North Carolina State Highway Patrol says the late-night wreck claimed the lives of Fletcher Mark Daniel Harris, 20, of Catawba, and Skylar Nichole Provenza, 19, of Statesville. Investigators say a pickup truck crossed the center line and struck their vehicle head-on.

As details of the crash became public, grief quickly spread through schools, workplaces, churches, and neighborhoods connected to the two victims. Friends and classmates describe Harris and Provenza as young people at the start of their adult lives — full of plans that will now never be realized.

In Cleveland, a growing memorial now lines Amity Hill Road. Flowers, candles, and handwritten messages sit quietly at the site, visited by strangers and loved ones alike. Some stop briefly, others linger — many shaken by how ordinary the night was before tragedy struck.

The crash has also reignited conversations across Iredell and surrounding counties about impaired driving and roadway safety, especially on rural roads where high speeds and limited lighting leave little margin for error. Several residents say the road has long been a concern, while others say the loss has changed how they think about everyday drives.

State troopers say the driver of the pickup truck, 37-year-old Juan Alvarado Aguilar, faces multiple charges including felony death by vehicle and driving while impaired. The investigation remains ongoing.

For now, families and friends are left navigating grief that arrived suddenly and violently. In a community accustomed to seeing familiar faces, the loss of two young people has left a silence that many say will not fade quickly.

As one mourner wrote at the memorial: “Two lives. One moment. Forever changed.”