Driver charged after deadly crash at intersection, South Carolina police say
Three people were killed and two more were injured Monday in separate crashes that happened in the same South Carolina county, law enforcement officials said.
The first wreck happened at about 10:30 a.m., according to the Spartanburg Police Department.
A Nissan Maxima was driving south on South Church Street, police said. The Nissan was turning left onto Bomar Avenue when it collided with a 2014 Harley-Davidson motorcycle that was heading north on South Church Street, according to police.
The motorcycle rider, who was not wearing a helmet, was ejected from the Harley-Davidson and died at the scene, police said. The Spartanburg County Coroner’s Office said 53-year-old Billy Keith Stevens was the motorcycle rider who died, WHNS reported.
Police said that the Nissan driver was not hurt, and no other injuries were reported. There was no word if the driver was wearing a seat belt.
The Nissan driver was charged with failure to yield right of way, according to police.
There was another unrelated fatal two-vehicle collision in Spartanburg County a few hours later. That wreck occurred about 13 miles away from the first crash site at approximately 3:40 p.m., on S.C. 417 near Chicken Foot Creek Road, said Master Trooper Gary Miller of the South Carolina Highway Patrol.
A 2008 Kia Sportage SUV was driving south on S.C. 417 when it crossed over the center line and crashed head-on into a northbound 2008 Buick Lucerne, according to Miller.
The coroner’s office said that the drivers of both vehicles died, WYFF reported.
According to the coroner’s office, 67-year-old Eddie Bellew was driving the Kia and 92-year-old Charles Litke was behind the wheel of the Buick, WHNS reported.
There were passengers in both the Kia and Buick, and each was hurt and taken to an area hospital, Miller said. Further information on the surviving victims’ conditions was not available.
There was no word if any of the people involved in the second crash were wearing seat belts.
Information about what caused the Kia to veer into oncoming traffic was not available. Miller did not say if the collision is still being investigated by the Highway Patrol.
Through Sunday, 846 people have died on South Carolina roads in 2024, according to the state Department of Public Safety. Last year, 1,030 people died in crashes in South Carolina, DPS reported.
At least 55 people have died in Spartanburg County crashes in 2024, second most of an county in South Carolina, according to DPS data.
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