Hardeeville man named as driver killed when vehicle crashed, sank into retention pond
The Jasper County Coroner’s Office has identified 45-year-old Hardeeville man Nelson Espinoza-Flores as the driver who was killed when his vehicle crashed into a retention pond in southern Hardeeville Wednesday afternoon.
Coroner Willie P. Aiken said his office had not yet determined a cause of death, but an autopsy would be conducted Friday.
Hardeeville police received a call for the crash at 4:06 p.m. Wednesday, said department spokesperson and chief of police Sam Woodward. The 2013 Chrysler 200 mid-size sedan had struck a curb, ran through a fence and became “fully submerged” in a retention pond around 186 Exchange Place, part of the RiverPort Commerce Park off U.S. 17.
One passenger was inside the vehicle but was able to escape safely, according to Woodward.
With the help of a dive team from the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office, a wrecker pulled the vehicle out of the water around 7 p.m., Woodward said. The body of Espinoza-Flores was found inside.
Woodward estimated the entrapped vehicle was about 10 to 15 feet underwater.
2024 traffic deaths in Beaufort, Jasper counties
Thursday afternoon’s incident marks the eighth traffic-related fatality in Beaufort and Jasper counties so far this year:
This story was originally published February 29, 2024 at 12:47 PM.
