One person killed when pickup truck runs off SC road and crashes into tree, cops say

One person was killed Saturday when a pickup truck crashed into a tree, according to the South Carolina Highway Patrol.

The single-vehicle collision happened at about 1:20 p.m. in Newberry County, said Lance Cpl. Brittany Glover.

A 2004 Toyota Tundra was driving east on Jalapa Road, according to Glover. Near the intersection with Beth Eden Road the pickup swerved off the left side of Jalapa Road, then hit a ditch before crashing into a tree, Glover said. That’s near Exit 66 on Interstate 26.

There were two people in the pickup truck and one of them died at the scene, according to Glover.

The Newberry County Coroner’s Office has not publicly identified the victim who died.

Glover did not say if the other person in the pickup was hurt, and did not report any other injuries.

The Highway Patrol did not say if the the victim who died was the pickup’s driver or passenger.

There was no word if either of the people in the pickup were wearing seat belts.

Information about what caused the pickup to veer off the road was not available. Glover did not say if the Highway Patrol is still investigating the crash.

Through Tuesday, 289 people had 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 six people have died in Newberry County crashes in 2024, according to DPS data. There were nine deaths in the county in 2023, DPS reported.