Two killed, four more injured in separate crashes in same Midlands county, SC cops say

Two people were killed and four others were injured in separate crashes in the same Midlands county Wednesday, according to the South Carolina Highway Patrol.

One of the deadly wrecks involved an SUV and two motorcycles, Lance Cpl. Tyler Tidwell said.

A 2015 Buick SUV was driving west on a stretch of U.S. 176 in Orangeburg County near the intersection with Big Oaks Drive when it collided with an eastbound 2015 Harley-Davidson motorcycle, according to Tidwell. That’s in the Lake Marion area.

There were two people riding on the Harley-Davidson, and both were thrown from the bike, Tidwell said. The Harley-Davidson driver was then run over by a 2012 Honda motorcycle and died, according to Tidwell.

Passengers on both the Harley-Davidson and Honda motorcycles were hurt and taken to an area hospital, Tidwell said. Further information on their conditions was not available.

The Orangeburg County Coroner’s Office has not publicly identified the Harley-Davidson driver.

Neither the driver of the SUV nor the driver of the Honda were hurt, according to Tidwell.

No other injuries were reported.

There was no word if any of the motorcycle riders wore helmets.

Information about what caused the initial collision between the Harley-Davidson and the SUV was not available, but it continues to be investigated by the Highway Patrol.

An unrelated fatal crash happened at 5:40 a.m. in Orangeburg County, Tidwell said.

The two-vehicle wreck happened on U.S. 301 at the intersection with Creek Middle Circle, according to Tidwell.

A 2006 Lexus was driving east on Creek Middle Circle and collided with a 2000 Peterbilt tractor trailer that was going south on U.S. 301, Tidwell said.

The Lexus driver was killed and a passenger was taken to Prisma Health Richland hospital, while the tractor trailer driver was taken to Regional Medical Center in Orangeburg, according to Tidwell. Information on the truck driver and Lexus passenger’s conditions was not available.

The coroner has not publicly identified the Lexus driver.

There was no word what caused the crash, or if any of the people involved wore seat belts.

More than 766 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 34 people have died in Orangeburg County crashes in 2022, data shows. Last year, 45 deaths were reported there, DPS reported.