A 42-year-old Easley man was struck and killed by a vehicle early Monday morning while walking along Interstate 26 in Lexington County, according to the county coroner. Robert Edward Dove was hit around 4:10 a.m. near mile marker 105. The driver remained at the scene, and no injury to that driver was reported.
Initial reporting by WYFF described one vehicle striking Dove. Dove was pronounced dead at the scene, with the coroner attributing his death to injuries sustained in the collision.
The driver remained at the scene following the crash, and no injury was reported for that driver. The crash occurred near mile marker 105 in Lexington County.
Why Was Dove on the Interstate?
Investigators have not said why Dove was walking on I-26 at that hour, and it remains an open question whether a disabled vehicle or some other emergency put him in the travel lane. South Carolina law addresses walking along a freeway, according to the Joye Law Firm.
At the same time, South Carolina law places a general duty of care on drivers. S.C. Code § 56-5-3230 requires motorists to exercise due care to avoid hitting pedestrians on a roadway and to sound an audible horn warning when necessary, according to the Joye Law Firm. That dual framework — pedestrian restrictions paired with driver responsibility — will likely shape how investigators and any civil claims evaluate fault in a crash involving three separate vehicles.
Part of a Persistent Statewide Problem
Dove's death adds to a grim tally across South Carolina. Preliminary state figures showed 109 pedestrian fatalities statewide in 2026 through Tuesday, down slightly from 115 recorded over the same span in 2025, according to the South Carolina Department of Public Safety. Total traffic deaths statewide were also down, with 605 fatalities across 572 fatal crashes recorded through the same date this year, compared to 659 deaths and 618 fatal crashes during the same period last year.
Despite the year-over-year dip, South Carolina's pedestrian safety record remains among the worst in the country. Between 2020 and 2024, the state ranked fourth highest in the nation for pedestrian mortality, recording 893 pedestrian deaths and an annual rate of 3.37 fatalities per 100,000 residents, according to the Steinberg Law Firm. A pedestrian and bicycle safety action plan is also mentioned in the available sources.
A Heavily Traveled I-26 Stretch
This section of I-26 is in Lexington County, where the crash occurred.
Hoodline reported on a separate Cayce case involving a mother of three killed while walking overnight in nearby Lexington County, a crash that remains unsolved. The investigation into Dove's death continues.
