WHITEVILLE, N.C. (THECOUNT) — Evelyn Young Pittman was killed Sunday afternoon when the vehicle she was driving lost control on a wet roadway and crashed in Whiteville, North Carolina, according to the Whiteville Police Department.
Pittman was a resident of Lake Waccamaw, a small town in Columbus County located approximately 13 miles east of Whiteville.
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Pittman was 65 years of age.
The fatal single-vehicle crash occurred at approximately 2:59 p.m. on Sunday, March 15, 2026, at the intersection of South Franklin Street and Caldis Street in Whiteville — a city of approximately 5,500 residents that serves as the county seat of Columbus County in southeastern North Carolina.
According to investigators, Pittman was driving a silver Kia Rondo southbound on South Franklin Street at a high rate of speed when the vehicle entered a curve. With the roadway wet at the time of the crash, Pittman lost control and the vehicle struck and came to rest near the intersection. She was found at the scene and pronounced dead.
Police said no other vehicles were involved in the crash.
The Whiteville Police Department is leading the investigation. No additional details regarding contributing factors beyond speed and wet road conditions have been released.
South Franklin Street is a primary north-south corridor through Whiteville running through the heart of the city’s commercial and residential district. The intersection with Caldis Street sits in the southern portion of the downtown area.
Whiteville is located along US Highway 74/76 in Columbus County, approximately 55 miles northwest of Wilmington and 75 miles south of Fayetteville. The city serves as a regional hub for healthcare, commerce, and public services for the surrounding rural communities of Columbus County, which include Lake Waccamaw, Chadbourn, Tabor City, and Hallsboro. The county borders Brunswick, Bladen, and Robeson counties to the north and Horry County in South Carolina to the south.
Lake Waccamaw, where Pittman resided, is a small community of approximately 1,300 residents situated on the north shore of the 9,000-acre Lake Waccamaw — the largest natural freshwater lake in North Carolina. The town is located roughly 12 miles east of Whiteville via US 74.
Wet road conditions are a significant contributing factor in traffic fatalities across North Carolina, particularly on older municipal roadways with limited banking through curves.
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