Driver killed in crash that led to long traffic jam in Lexington County named by coroner
One person was killed in a Wednesday car crash that caused an hours-long traffic jam on a highway in Lexington County, according to South Carolina officials.
Victoria Ryan Johnson, a 50-year-old West Columbia resident, died from injuries she suffered in the accident, Lexington County Coroner Margaret Fisher said Thursday.
The single-vehicle collision happened on Interstate 26 as the evening commute was getting underway at about 4:45 p.m., said Cpl. Tyler Tidwell of the South Carolina Highway Patrol.
The wreck was near Exit 111, and all of the westbound lanes on I-26 were temporarily blocked, according to the South Carolina Department of Transportation. That’s in West Columbia, and the exit is the junction with both U.S. 1 and S.C. 12.
Johnson was driving a 2010 Hyundai Elantra west on I-26 when it ran off the right side of the road, near the 112 mile marker, Tidwell said. The car corrected and came back onto the interstate before veering off the left side of the highway and crashing into a concrete median barrier and killing Johnson at the scene, according to Tidwell.
Johnson was not wearing a seat belt, Fisher said.
Tidwell said Johnson was the only person in the car, and no other injuries were reported.
The West Columbia Fire Department said traffic was diverted and drivers were warned to avoid the area.
It was about 7 p.m. when the westbound lanes on I-26 were reopened and the scene was cleared, according to SCDOT.
Information about what caused the car to originally veer off the road was not available, but the collision remains under investigation by the Highway Patrol and coroner’s office.
Through Sunday, 370 people had died on South Carolina roads in 2023, according to the state Department of Public Safety. Last year, 1,091 people died in crashes in South Carolina, DPS reported.
At least 13 people have died in Lexington County crashes in 2023, according to DPS data. Last year, 43 deaths were reported in the county, DPS reported.
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This story was originally published May 25, 2023 at 7:56 AM.
