One killed, another hurt in crash on highway running through Columbia, SC cops say
One person was killed and another was injured Monday in a crash on a major highway in Columbia, according to the South Carolina Highway Patrol.
The single-vehicle collision happened at about 7:30 a.m. on Interstate 77, said Lance Cpl. William Bennett.
A 2010 Nissan pickup truck was driving north on I-77, and near the 9 mile marker the vehicle ran off the right side of the highway and hit the end of a guard rail, according to Bennett. That’s near Exit 9, which is the junction with Garners Ferry Road.
There were two people in the pickup, and the passenger died at the scene, Bennett said.
The Richland County Coroner’s Office has not publicly identified the passenger.
The driver was taken to Prisma Health Richland hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, according to Bennett. Further information on the driver’s condition was not available.
No other injuries were reported.
There was no word if either the driver or passenger were wearing seat belts.
Information about what caused the pickup to veer off I-77 was not available. The Highway Patrol did not say if the crash remains under investigation.
Two northbound lanes were temporarily closed and the scene wasn’t cleared until about 10 a.m., according to the South Carolina Department of Transportation.
Through Sunday, 561 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 34 people have died in Richland County crashes in 2023, according to DPS data. Last year, 67 deaths were reported in the county, DPS reported.
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