Wrecks on SC roads kill 12 during New Year’s weekend

South Carolina Department of Public Safety officials said there were 12 road deaths reported during the New Year’s holiday weekend.

Officials said nine of the deaths occurred on U.S. routes, S.C. roads and secondary roads. One happened on a county road, and two others happened on interstates.

In five of the deaths, officials said a seat belt was not used. Three people killed were wearing seat belts, while seat belt usage was unknown for two other deaths. Two people killed were pedestrians.

In 2016, 975 people died on state highways, compared to 979 highway deaths in 2015. Seven people were killed during the 2015 New Years holiday travel period.

Of the 635 motor-vehicle occupants who died in 2016, 322 were not wearing seat belts.

When it comes to pedestrians, 137 were killed in 2016 compared to 125 in 2015. About 135 motorcyclists died in 2016 compared to 140 in the previous year. Twenty-five bicyclists last year compared to 16 in 2015.

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This story was originally published January 3, 2017 at 2:06 PM with the headline "Wrecks on SC roads kill 12 during New Year’s weekend."