A 63-year-old cyclist was killed and at least a dozen riders were hurt on Saturday morning when a driver suspected of being impaired drove into a group of more than 40 cyclists on a road near Raleigh, North Carolina, police said.

The crash happened just after 9.30am on Optimist Farm Road in Wake County, about 14 miles south-west of Raleigh. The North Carolina State Highway Patrol said the driver, travelling west in a black Infiniti, crossed the centre line and struck the riders, members of the Capital Cycling Club, who were travelling east as part of a regular weekend group ride.

The rider who died was named as Patrick Allen Turner, 63, of Cary. Holly Springs Fire Chief LeRoy Smith said seven people suffered major injuries and 15 others had minor injuries, while the Highway Patrol put the number hurt at about a dozen, with several riders taken to hospital.

The driver did not stop after hitting the group. Officials said the car continued for about half a mile before leaving the left side of the road and crashing into a ditch, where the driver was arrested. He was identified as Donald Robert Morris-Jones, 76, of Apex.

Morris-Jones faces a string of charges, including felony death by vehicle, seven counts of felony serious injury by vehicle, eight counts of felony hit-and-run involving serious injury or death, driving while impaired, reckless driving and driving left of centre. He was being held in the Wake County Detention Center on a $1 million bond.

The Highway Patrol said impairment is suspected to have been a factor in the crash, and its investigation is continuing. Full details of the charges were reported by The States Journal, citing the Highway Patrol and reports from NBC News and CBS News.