Coroner identifies pedestrian killed early Tuesday morning on Parris Island Gateway
The pedestrian who was struck by a tractor-trailer Tuesday morning on Parris Island Gateway has been identified as a 56-year-old Beaufort man, according to the Beaufort County Coroner’s Office.
Ronald Graham, 56, was pronounced dead at the scene around 4:39 a.m., according to deputy coroner Tiffany Lovitt. Graham was homeless, Lovitt said. It is not known where Graham typically stayed, Beaufort Police spokesperson Capt. George Erdel said, but he was typically seen at the Cross Creek Shopping Center, near Robert Smalls Parkway on Boundary Street.
Around 4:30 a.m. Tuesday, Graham was heading north on Parris Island Gateway, the same direction as a Freightliner tractor-trailer, when he was struck, South Carolina Highway Patrol Trooper Nick Pye said. The driver of the tractor-trailer was not injured and was wearing a seat belt, Pye said.
All eastbound lanes of S.C. 21 were blocked after the crash, from Horton Drive to Broad River Boulevard, according to an alert from the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office. As of 6:25 a.m., the crash had been cleared.
Graham is the fifth pedestrian to be killed this year in Beaufort County, and the second fatality in 2021 on Parris Island Gateway, according to the latest data from the Department of Public Safety.
An autopsy for Graham has been scheduled for Monday at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston.
The Highway Patrol is investigating the crash.
This story was originally published December 8, 2021 at 3:44 PM.
