Pedestrian dies after being hit by semi-truck in northern Beaufort County
A pedestrian was pronounced dead Monday night after being struck by a semi-truck along a highway in northern Beaufort County, officials say.
The fatal crash happened around 8 p.m. Monday slightly north of the intersection of U.S. 17 (Charleston Highway) and River Road, about 5 miles northeast of the U.S. 17/21 junction in Gardens Corner.
A 1999 Peterbilt semi-truck driving north on the highway struck a pedestrian who was in the roadway, according to Master Trooper Joseph Rowell of the South Carolina Highway Patrol.
According to the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office incident report, however, the agency received several calls reporting a male in an unbuttoned shirt was walking on the side of the highway when he was hit by “multiple vehicles.”
Police arrived to find the man’s body on the pavement and a large semi-truck stopped on the westbound side of the highway, the report says.
First responders shut down both lanes of U.S. 17 heading into Beaufort as EMS responded to the scene. The SCHP assumed control of the investigation.
Beaufort County Chief Deputy Coroner Shane Bowers confirmed the incident involved a pedestrian fatality but could not provide the man’s identity as of Tuesday morning.
A string of fatal collisions in Beaufort County
Monday night’s crash was one of three fatal traffic collisions in Beaufort County within three days.
Early Saturday afternoon, a driver was killed after being ejected from their Ford Mustang and struck by an SUV on Bluffton Parkway.
And on Sunday night, two people were killed and another was hospitalized with critical injuries after a head-on crash on Lady’s Island.
The Beaufort County Coroner’s Office had not identified the victims from the three recent incidents as of noon Tuesday.
This story was originally published January 20, 2026 at 12:15 PM.
