Driver dies after car crashes into canal near Hardeeville

HARDEEVILLE -- A Ridgeland man died early Sunday when he drove off a Jasper County highway and flipped over into a canal filled with water, authorities said.

Mateo Trujillo Quintana, who is either 24 or 25 years old, was trapped inside his Mitsubishi Eclipse on the side of U.S. 17-A, just south of the Great Swamp Bridge near the Switzerland community, said Jasper County Coroner Martin Sauls III.

Quintana's car was headed north when it crossed the center line, hit a guide wire and landed in the lagoon, according to Lance Cpl. Bob Beres of the S.C. Highway Patrol. He was wearing a seat belt.

A passing motorist noticed the submerged car at around 7 a.m., said Sauls. Quintana probably had been in the water for a few hours at that point, he said.

Quintana lived just north of Ridgeland on Tammy Drive. He worked as an electrician and is survived by a large family, said Sauls. His body will be shipped to Mexico.

It was the third fatal wreck in Beaufort and Jasper counties over the weekend.

Just before 10 p.m. Friday, Donna Croft, 42, of Bluffton died in a two-vehicle wreck on U.S. 278, just east of the Sun City Hilton Head bridge. She was not wearing a seat belt. The driver of her vehicle, Eric S. Bittner, 38, of Hilton Head Island was charged with drunken driving.

In the second crash, Darryl D. Bradley ofSt. Helena Island lost control of his minivan at about 4 a.m. Saturday on U.S. 21 near Folly Road. He wasn't wearing a seat belt, said Beres.