18-wheeler crashes onto golf course on U.S. 15 in Sumter County

*UPDATE 4:30 p.m. : South Carolina Highway Patrol Lance Cpl. David Jones said the wreck only involved the tractor trailer which was carrying hazardous materials.

No hazardous materials were spilled, he said.

Jones said the truck went off the left side of the U.S. 15 south bound, went through a fence and struck a powerline.

The driver is reported to have minor injuries, he said. The wreck is still under investigation but the driver had some kind of medical condition, he said.

Jones said a clean up crew would be on scene to monitor as a wrecker service moves the truck.

-----

*UPDATE 2:50 p.m. : Sumter Fire Department Division Chief Brian Christmas said the department's hazmat team found no chemical readings and did not see any leaks when checking drums carried by the 18-wheeler.

He said the fire department has left the scene but other first responder agencies are still there.

-----

At least four first-responder agencies have been called to U.S. 15 South after an 18-wheeler crossed multiple lanes and wrecked on Lakewood Links Golf Course on Friday morning.

It appears the truck, which was traveling south on the highway, crossed the median and two lanes on the northbound side of the roadway before striking a utility pole and coming to a stop on the golf course, according to Micah Green, chief digital officer for The Sumter Item, who was on scene.

The condition of the truck driver is not available through South Carolina Highway Patrol's real-time traffic information site which states there are injuries.

An ambulance was on scene, Green said.

Thomas Sumter Fire Station's hazmat team was called to the scene.

Sumter Fire Department Division Chief Brian Christmas said the hazmat team is currently identifying products and checking for leaks.

He said a hazmat crew from Charleston is on its way to handle the clean up of the wreck.

The truck was carrying a freight container, but the contents are unknown at this time.

Green also reported multiple traffic light outages in the area and said a portion of the northbound lanes of U.S. 15 are blocked by first responders.

Christmas encourages drivers to find alternative routes when approaching Nettles and Bethel Church roads on U.S. 15.

One of the north bound lanes, the lanes heading toward Sumter, between those two roads is closed, he said.

Sumter Fire Department, Sumter County Sheriff's Office, Sumter County EMS and S.C. Highway Patrol are on scene.

More information will be posted as it becomes available.