The Highway Patrol said a tractor-trailer was headed south on I-95 around noon at mile marker 155 west of Enfield when it rear-ended another vehicle which slowed for a construction zone, causing a chain reaction wreck.
Authorities said John Robinson, 66, the tractor-trailer driver, did not use his brakes and may have been going as fast as 70 mph when the accident occurred.
"I looked in my mirror and I saw cars behind me and a big truck that did not stop. He just barreled down on top of them," witness Charlie Amon said. "So he hit a couple of cars in back of me and by that time, I got rammed."
Six vehicles were affected in the accident. Six people were taken to area hospitals. Two people, who were listed in critical condition, later died. They have been identified as Mary Polensky, 56, of Charleston, S.C. and Raymond Bartley, 76, of Colonial Beach, Va.
Troopers said Polensky was in the first vehicle hit by the tractor-trailer; Bartley was in the second vehicle hit.
No one involved in the wrecks are from North Carolina.
Authorities said Robinson, of Princess Anne, Md., had a pacemaker, but it was not known whether his medical condition was a factor in the accident.
Troopers said Robinson told them that he looked down and when he looked up, it was too late to do anything.
Troopers charged Robinson with two counts of misdemeanor death by vehicle.
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