A Brooklyn man and a South Carolina woman died Tuesday night in a crash on Interstate 95, apparently while the car they were in was parked in the southbound travel lane, according to the North Carolina State Highway Patrol.

Two other passengers are in the ECU Medical Center ICU in critical condition, Sergeant L. Bynum said.

The crash occurred around 9:45 p.m. in the left lane of I-95 near the 162 mile marker in the Halifax area.

The driver, Kenrod Dabreo, and a right backseat passenger, Lakisha Dixon, were identified as the deceased.

The 45-year-old Dixon’s son, Donte Smith, 20, was in the back left seat and is in critical condition. Her other son, 22-year-old Deshawn Dixon, was discharged from medical care. Tonya Lewis, 49, of Brooklyn, was the right front passenger and was taken to ECU Medical ICU and is in critical condition.

Bynum said the initial investigation by Trooper J.S. Mizelle said it appears the vehicle was stopped on the interstate in the travel lane. Why and if the vehicle was actually parked in the travel lane remains under investigation.

The crash occurred when a tractor-trailer traveling in the right lane merged into the left and collided with the rear of the vehicle. Dabreo and Ms. Dixon were ejected and the vehicle came to rest in the right lane of traffic facing the northbound lane. The tractor-trailer went through the guardrail and overturned on its left side. The tractor-trailer driver was not injured.

Bynum said charges are pending further investigation in the case to determine the contributing factors.

Open containers were found in the backseat but none in the front, the sergeant said.

Dabreo was on his way to Sumter, South Carolina, to return the Dixon family home when the crash occurred.