76-year old was pedestrian fatality

An elderly Seneca man, on the way to a medical appointment, was the victim this morning of a truck-pedestrian accident on 123—the main highway artery between Seneca and Clemson. Coroner Karl Addis said the accident that took the life of pedestrian Franklin G. Hester occurred in the west bound lanes of the highway. Hester was 76 years old. Addis said the driver involved, a cargo truck driver from Greenville, attempted to take evasive action. According to Addis, Hester was headed toward the AnMed Health Center at Clemson, but encountered trouble with his van. He parked the van in the lot at Bountyland Quik Stop, and then began to walk across the highway to the Paws Restaurant for a hot drink on a cold morning. According to Addis, the accident occurred after Hester left the restaurant and started to walk back across the highway to his parked van.  State troopers identified the truck driver as Greenville County resident Kelvin Powell and say the accident is under investigation.  The death of Franklin G. Hester was the 14th traffic fatality of the year in Oconee County, according to the records of the coroner’s office.