An I-85 automobile accident in Anderson, S.C. has left one dead and another injured according to media reports. The automobile accident occurred on July 26, 2015, near the 16 mile marker on the northbound side.  I-85 runs through Anderson County, S.C., Greenville County S.C., Spartanburg County, S.C., and Cherokee County S.C.  This automobile accident is obviously a tragedy. Anytime a person loses his or life in an automobile accident, its a tragedy.  A family loses one of its members;  a community loses a friend and valued member.

According to reports in local media, the driver of a Honda went to change lanes when it hit a Kia. Both vehicles hit a guardrail but the Honda flipped over the guardrail and then hit a bridge pillar. The driver of the Honda was transferred to Greenville Memorial Hospital by airlift but later succumbed to the personal injury sustained in the automobile accident. The driver of the Kia was tranfsported to ANMED Hospital, but according to media reports, there is no word on the severity of personal injury, if any, sustained.

There is no word in the media reports as to what caused the Honda to flip over the guardrail. Obviously, the guardrail worked to prevent the Kia from flipping over it.  Usually in automobile accidents involving fatalities, the South Carolina Highway Patrol will deploy its M.A.I.T. unit to conduct a full investigation. It will also have to be determined why the driver of the Honda went to change lanes causing it to strike the Kia.  A driver may change lanes only when its safe to do so.  A driver also has a duty to keep a proper lookout and to know what is around it before changing lanes. Its was not reported in the news media the speed of the vehicles or whether speed played a role in the collision.

I-85 is a dangerous interstate highway that connects three large counties in the upstate of South Carolina. There is usually a lot of traffic on I-85 and the traffic is usually traveling at high rates of speed.  Moreover, tractor-trailers are usually a heavy presence on I-85.   An I-85 automobile accident is a common occurence and it is imperative that if you have to drive on I-85, that you do so in a safe and reasonable manner-driving under the speed limit if necessary to give yourself room to avoid other motor vehicles around you in the event of a sudden action, such as stopping or changing lanes.  This I-85 automobile accident was a fatality-the worst of all automobile accidents.

It is so important to always leave a good distance between your vehicle and other vehicles around you.  You never know what another vehicle will do, especially if it is faced with a sudden emergency.  What if trash or debris falls off of a truck and one vehicle takes sudden, evasive action to avoid stiking the trash that is now sitting in the middle of the road? Always, always leave plenty of distance from other vehicles so that you will time and distance to slow down and avoid an accident altogther.