A Monday afternoon ride on the back of a pickup truck ended in tragedy on a rural stretch of S.C. Highway 243 in Anderson County, when a 40-year-old man was killed in a collision with a semitruck, according to state troopers.
Authorities identified the victim as Carmen Joaquin Morales of Marion, North Carolina, and said he was pronounced dead at the scene.
Troopers: Pickup And Semitruck Collide
According to the South Carolina Highway Patrol, the crash happened just after 2 p.m. near the intersection of Milford Road and S.C. 243 and involved a 2015 Dodge Ram pickup and a 2018 Peterbilt tractor-trailer. The two vehicles collided at that location, as reported by WLFI.
Coroner Responds; Victim Was On Tailgate
The Anderson County Coroner’s Office was called to the scene, and local coverage identified the victim as 40-year-old Carmen Joaquin Morales of Marion, N.C. That reporting states Morales had been sitting on the truck's tailgate when the collision occurred and was pronounced dead at the site, according to WBRC.
No Other Injuries Reported As Probe Continues
Officials said no other injuries were reported in the wreck. Troopers with the South Carolina Highway Patrol are continuing their investigation and have not released additional details about what led to the crash, according to WLFI.
Why Riding On Tailgates Is So Dangerous
Safety experts have long warned that riding in the cargo area of a pickup is far riskier than riding inside the cab. A 1994 study in the West Journal of Medicine found passengers in pickup cargo areas were more likely to be ejected and seriously injured, and the researchers concluded that "there is no safe, crash-tested means of travel in the cargo areas of pickup trucks," per West J Med.
Local outlets report the Highway Patrol investigation remains active and that more information will be released as it becomes available, according to WBRC.
