Car wreck fatal to camp counselor

A late night car accident near Mountain Rest has proved fatal to a 41-year old man on his way to work.  The accident occurred at 9:50 last night on SC 28/the Highlands Highway, eight miles north of Walhalla.  Coroner Karl Addis said Alton Owens Jr. died at the scene in the presence of EMS personnel.  Owens was 41 years old.  He was on his way to work as a counselor at a boys’ camp near Mountain Rest.  Owens was traveling west on Highlands Highway toward Mountain Rest; his vehicle ran under a large tree which had fallen across the roadway during a heavy rain storm.  Addis said Owens was trapped in the car and was first talking to the arriving fire department personnel, but several minutes later the emergency crew witnessed him going into cardiac arrest.  An autopsy has been ordered.