Motorcycle rider killed in crash with deer identified by Lexington County coroner
A motorcycle rider died after crashing into a deer on a Lexington County road late Sunday night, the South Carolina Highway Patrol said.
Charles William Lutz, a 50-year-old St. Matthews resident, was killed in the accident Lexington County Coroner Margaret Fisher said Tuesday night.
The collision happened at about 10:30 p.m. on S.C. 6, according to Cpl. David Jones.
A 2002 Harley-Davidson was driving east near the intersection with Beaver Creek Road when the motorcycle hit a deer, Jones said. That’s about 5 miles from Exit 129 on Interstate 26.
Lutz was ejected from the motorcycle and later died at an area hospital, according to Jones. He was not wearing a helmet, Fisher said.
No other injuries were reported.
The crash continues to be investigated by the Highway Patrol.
Through Sunday, 730 people had died on South Carolina roads in 2022, according to the state Department of Public Safety. Last year, 1,194 people died in crashes in South Carolina, DPS reported.
At least 31 people have died in Lexington County crashes in 2022, and this is the seventh involving a motorcycle, DPS reported. Last year, 57 deaths were reported there, according to DPS data.
This crash happened on the same day that at least five other people were killed in collisions on Midlands roads.
On Sunday morning, a 2021 Tesla was driving west on Salem Church Road in Richland County when it ran off the left side of the road and hit a tree before it went up in flames, the South Carolina Highway Patrol said. Both the driver and a front-seat passenger were killed.
At about 10 a.m., a Polaris side-by-side ATV was driving south in the median of U.S. 301 in Orangeburg County when it overturned into a creek and the driver died, according to the Highway Patrol.
Later Sunday evening, at about 11:30 p.m., two people died in another Lexington County crash near the intersection of Augusta Road and 12th Street that involved a tractor trailer truck, according to the West Columbia Police Department.
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This story was originally published September 19, 2022 at 8:24 AM.
