Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Mail truck runs into creek, mail carrier dead
Eye-witness describes finding
death vehicle in creek water
Cummings SC, Tuesday, May 19, 2009. My husband and I were presented with a vivid reminder of how precious life is yesterday afternoon. We were approaching a little bridge on a rural road in our vehicle as we drove to our home in Cummings after some errands in Beaufort.
We were only a mile from our home when my husband noticed that a tree near the bridge had been hit by a vehicle. Tire tracks led from the tree to the water. It appeared that another car had gone into the creek branch again. A couple of a months ago some young men went into the same branch when it was not flooded by the recent rains. Although they were all okay, Lifestar had to be called then.
We knew the wreck this time had to have occurred recently because news travels fast in our area. You can hear sirens for miles, and sirens are very rare.
I kind of half-jokingly asked my husband if he saw anything in the overflowing creek. As we crossed the bridge, my husband noticed that water had splashed on the bridge and was not dry.
At this point we decided to take nothing for granted but to check the creek. With a sick feeling, we saw only a very, very small portion of the back of a truck exposed, just enough to see the color of the vehicle, blue.
I called 911 as my husband ran into the water to try to help, knowing in our hearts that it was already too late.
As my husband attempted to locate someone in the vehicle and I checked the banks, we noticed mail floating down the branch and began realizing that the vehicle belonged to our mail-carrier, a very nice older man named Charles Houck.
We knew he would have been alone and that we came up on the accident not long after it had happened. We cannot ever remember him driving carelessly or speeding, so we think something beyond his control must have happened.
Many of us who live on his mail route did not even know his name before yesterday, but we will probably remember it always now. We will miss Charles Houck along Ram Horn Road.
Article and photos by Susan Yoakum Woods, special to The Beaufort Tribune
Editor’s note: The accident occurred about 4:55 p.m. The driver, Charles Houck, 63, resided at 202 Cain Street, Hampton SC. He was an employee of the U.S. Postal Service in the Varnville SC area, according to Hampton County Deputy Coroner Susanne Peeples.
