A Maxton woman was killed and her pregnant sister lost her unborn twins when the vehicle they were riding in collided with a tractor trailer driven by a Laurinburg man, according to the state Highway Patrol.

Trooper Michael Strickland said Toni Tennille Brooks, 32, of 44 O'Quinn Road, Maxton, was killed in the accident that occurred at 1:30 p.m. at the intersection of Midway Road and N.C. 130.

Strickland said Brooks' sister, Keisha Brooks Locklear, 29, of 88 Performance Lane in Pembroke, was being transported to the hospital to give birth. The trooper did not know which hospital.

According to Strickland, Brooks and Locklear were passengers in a 1989

Suburban being driven by Brooks' boyfriend, Ron Christopher Lowry, 32,

of 1231 Midway Road. Strickland said a fourth person, Patrick

Locklear, 17, 3676 Elrod Road, whom he believes is Locklear's nephew,

was also in the car.

According to Strickland, the Suburban, which was traveling north, had

stopped at a stop sign on Midway Road, but Lowry pulled the vehicle

into the path of a westbound tractor-trailer. The tractor-trailer struck the Suburban on the passenger's side.

"The driver (Lowry) told me he had looked in the back seat ... at the

girl whose water had broken and then he went and ... all he saw was

the truck,'' Strickland said.

Strickland said that Brooks, Lowry and Locklear, all suffering "severe

injuries," were rushed to Scotland Memorial Hospital and that efforts

to save the unborn children were unsuccessful. He said family members

told him that Brooks had an appointment this week to have the babies

delivered.

A spokesman this morning said that Lockear was in the intensive care

unit at UNC Hospitals in Chapel Hill. Brooks and Lowry reportedly were

taken to Duke University Medical Center, but not information on their

conditions was immediately available.

The driver of the tractor-trailer, Tyson Concepcion, 26, of 224 McRae

St., Laurinburg, suffered minor injuries in the accident, Strickland

said.

According to Strickland, Lowry was charged with misdemeanor death by vehicle, failure to yield right of way and driving with a revoked license.

Strickland said the occupants of the Suburban did not appear to be wearing seat belts, but did not believe it was a contributing factor.

The Suburban was totaled and the tractor-trailer sustained an at least an estimated $12,000 in damage, according to Strickland.