Two people killed after getting out of car on highway, Lexington County coroner says
Two people were killed over the weekend after getting out of a car on a highway, the Lexington County Coroner’s Office said.
Heriberto Martinez Torres, 32, of West Columbia, and Beatriz Adrianna Peña-Jose, 40, of Columbia, died Sunday morning, Coroner Margaret Fisher said in a news release.
Torres and Peña-Jose died at the scene after being hit by multiple vehicles, according to the release.
The crashes happened at about 2:30 a.m. near Exit 113 on Interstate 26, Fisher said. That’s the junction with S.C. 302 in Cayce and the exit for the Columbia Metropolitan Airport.
Torres and Peña-Jose were in a vehicle that crashed into a barrier on I-26 eastbound, Fisher said.
After wrecking, the two got out of the vehicle and were walking across the westbound lanes of I-26 when they were each hit by two vehicles, according to the release.
Both drivers stopped to render aid, Fisher said.
One of the drivers was taken to an area hospital with minor injuries, according to the release. Further information on the driver’s condition was not available.
There was no word what caused the initial crash, but the entire incident is being investigated by South Carolina Highway Patrol.
Through Sunday, 1,048 people had died on South Carolina roads in 2021, including 165 pedestrians, state Department of Public Safety data shows.
At least 47 people have been killed in Lexington County crashes in 2021, and nine involved pedestrians, DPS reported.
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