A fatal crash Sunday on State Route 104 near Walker Road was the second deadly head-on collision on the Pickaway County highway in nine days. The Pickaway County Sheriff’s Office said its Communications Center received the first reports at 6:37 p.m. of a two-vehicle crash near 12534 State Route 104.
What investigators reported
According to the sheriff’s office, a southbound 2017 Chevrolet Trax was traveling in the northbound lane. Witnesses told investigators that a northbound 2024 GMC pickup moved into the opposite lane to avoid the Trax; the Trax then moved toward that lane before the vehicles collided. South Bloomfield police arrived first, followed by sheriff’s deputies, and the Ohio State Highway Patrol assisted.
Basil A. Southern, 47, of Columbus, was pronounced dead at the scene by Harrison Township Fire and EMS. Crews removed Southern and two passengers from the Chevrolet. Anna M. Southern and Stephanie A. Foster, both of Columbus, were taken to Columbus-area hospitals by Scioto Township Fire and EMS, according to the sheriff’s office.
Amanda J. Howard, who was driving the GMC, suffered injuries described as non-life-threatening and was taken to a local hospital by Circleville Fire and EMS. Sheriff Matthew O. Hafey thanked the responding agencies, and the sheriff’s office said the investigation remained ongoing.
Highway closure and earlier crash
The Scioto Valley Guardian reported that the sheriff’s office closed State Route 104 in both directions between State Route 316 and State Route 762 after the collision: Scioto Valley Guardian.
The earlier fatal crash occurred Sept. 4 near Commercial Point Road in Jackson Township, according to the Scioto Post. The report said a southbound vehicle crossed the center line and struck a northbound pickup; the driver later died and the other driver was hospitalized.
What the five-year context shows
The verified records available for this report identify the Sept. 4 crash as an earlier fatal and injury-producing collision on State Route 104 in Pickaway County. According to the Circleville Herald, the crash occurred just north of Commercial Point Road in Jackson Township when a southbound 2009 Nissan Versa crossed the center line and struck a northbound Ford F-150. Nissan driver James E. Terry III, 40, of Laurelville, later died at Grant Medical Center. The records supplied for this report do not establish a complete five-year inventory of fatal or serious-injury crashes on the highway.
