An 80-year-old Orangeburg man has been identified as the pedestrian killed early Saturday morning after a vehicle struck him while he was walking in the roadway on U.S. Highway 301. Charles J. Young III, of Five Chop Road, died at the scene near Cross Creek Drive at about 3:15 a.m.
Orangeburg County Coroner Sean Fogle identified Young as the victim, according to abccolumbia.com. A 2021 Chevrolet Trailblazer was traveling south on U.S. 301 when it struck Young, who was walking in the roadway, per live5news.com.
Fogle said Young died at the scene from blunt-force injuries sustained in the collision, and the station's report notes the driver of the Trailblazer was not injured. The coroner ruled the manner of death accidental.
Investigation Continues Into Early-Morning Crash
The collision remains under investigation, the same account states. No further details about the driver's identity, citations, or road conditions at the time of the crash have been released.
In May, an earlier pedestrian fatality occurred in Orangeburg County when Bernard Washington Jr., 36, of Michael Street in Orangeburg, was struck and killed by an unknown vehicle around 11:15 p.m. on Citadel Road near Regional Parkway, according to wistv.com. That vehicle left the scene, and Washington's death was also ruled accidental after he died from blunt-force injuries.
No additional information about Young's family, funeral arrangements, or further findings from the investigation into Saturday's crash has been released.
