Two young members of a North Carolina family were killed early Saturday morning when they were ejected from a vehicle that veered into the median on Interstate 26 in Orangeburg County and overturned several times, authorities said.

Lance Cpl. Paul Brouthers of the South Carolina Highway Patrol said a 2001 GMC Yukon headed eastbound on I-26 left the roadway and ran into the median near the 163 mile marker at around 6:43 a.m., flipping over several times.

Alex Cress, 8, and Tiffany Cress, 14, both of Concord, N.C., were killed when they were thrown from the vehicle, Orangeburg County Coroner Samuetta Marshall said.

The driver of the Yukon is believed to be the grandmother of the two children who were killed, Brouthers and Marshall said.

The driver and a 42-year-old female passenger in the vehicle, believed to be the mother of the two children who died, were transported to Palmetto Health Richland in Columbia. The nature of their injuries was not available.

Brouthers said it appeared the driver overcorrected when the vehicle ran off the roadway into the median, resulting in the rollover.

According to the SCHP Web site, a determination is pending as to whether or not the two children were wearing seat belts.

The Highway Patrol’s Multi-Disciplinary Accident Investigation Team, which investigates complicated crashes using state-of-the-art technology and analysis to restructure scenes, may investigate the crash, Brouthers said.

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