October 9, 2008

AIKEN COUNTY -- A 3-vehicle accident ends with one person dead in Aiken County.

31-year-old Jose Hector Gonzales-Hernandez of North Charleston was killed around 9 o'clock last night on I-20 eastbound, at mile marker 6 in Aiken County.

Two others were injured.

Gonzales-Hernandez was driving a load of produce toward Columbia. The accident started when his truck ran into the back of a Nissan SUV. Both vehicles went into the median.

The SUV hit the cable barrier and flipped over. The produce truck went into the eastbound lane and hit a semi.

The SUV driver, Brad Pritchett of Graniteville, and the semi-truck driver, Sylvester Taylor of Columbia, were taken to MCG Hospital in Augusta for treatment of injuries. Both are expected to survive.

Parts of I-20 were shut down for hours. Callers tell News 12 the traffic was backed up for five miles at one point.