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On Wednesday, April 12, the principal of James River High School identified Nicholas Booth and William Hammitt as the two students who were killed in the Chesterfield County car crash a day earlier.
On Tuesday, April 11, authorities said two James River High School students died in a fiery crash in Chesterfield while speeding along Old Gun Road West.
While authorities did not immediately disclose the names of the victims, who were reportedly pronounced dead at the scene, on Wednesday afternoon, a spokesperson for Chesterfield County Public Schools sent NBC12 a message confirming the names of the two seniors killed in the crash.
As per the spokesperson, the principal of James River High School, Dr. Amanda Voelker, shared the devastating message with the other parents of the students after obtaining permission from the victims' families.
Details explored as Nicholas Booth and William Hammitt are killed in Chesterfield county car crash
According to NBC News, on Tuesday, April 11, around 5.47 pm, Nicholas Booth and William Hammitt, seniors at James River High School, were driving along the 3200 block of Old Gun Road West in Chesterfield County in a BMW at a high rate of speed when the driver reportedly lost control of the vehicle.
Consequently, the BMW reportedly careened off the roadway and struck the driveway before the car flipped over and caught on fire.
Authorities said that Nicholas Booth and William Hammitt were trapped inside the vehicle and were pronounced dead at the scene. In a press release, the Chesterfield Police Department said:
“The vehicle traveled several hundred feet, struck a retaining wall, overturned, and caught fire. The driver and passenger were both trapped in the vehicle.”
While officials did not immediately identify the suspects, the principal of James River High School sent an email releasing the students’ names to classmates and school families. In the letter, Dr. Amanda Voelker identified the victims as Nicholas Booth and William Hammitt and added:
"Both families shared this with us and asked that I share this with you. We will keep these families in our thoughts during this difficult time. Counsellors and administrators are sharing this information with their classmates tomorrow to provide support and will do so Friday as well."
As per WTVR, other students told investigators that on the day of the crash, Nicholas Booth and Willaim Hammitt were playing a game of “senior assassin,” a collective student-sponsored competition between school seniors where players are assigned targets to eliminate each week with water guns.
Shortly after the school announced the deaths, James River High School and the greater Chesterfield County community mourned the deaths of high school students Nicholas Booth and William Hammitt.
On Wednesday, the James River High School Senior Assassin Instagram page announced it would end the game early amid the tragedy that struck the community. The page also stated that the money from the game would be donated to the families of the two victims.
