A South Carolina woman was killed and her daughter seriously injured in a crash early Saturday on Interstate 85 in Franklin County. The driver of the second vehicle is now facing multiple charges, including vehicular homicide.
According to the Georgia State Patrol, troopers from Post 52 in Hartwell responded to the two-vehicle wreck around 3:55 a.m. on July 26. The crash happened in the southbound lanes of I-85 and involved a Dodge Challenger and a Honda HR-V.
Investigators say the Challenger, driven by 31-year-old Thomas Lamar Hardy Jr. of Gaffney, South Carolina, was following the Honda too closely and struck its rear bumper. Both vehicles veered into the median and hit the cable barrier. The Honda overturned and came to rest on its side. The Challenger struck a guard rail and cable barrier before coming to rest facing south. Moments later, the vehicle caught fire. Hardy escaped with minor injuries.
The passenger in the Honda, 56-year-old Michelle Honea Prater of Westminster, South Carolina, was pronounced dead at the scene. Troopers say she was not wearing a seatbelt. The driver, 28-year-old Madison Elizabeth Prater, also of Westminster, was airlifted to Northeast Georgia Medical Center in Gainesville with serious injuries.
Hardy was charged with vehicular homicide in the first degree, serious injury by motor vehicle, reckless driving, driving under the influence, following too closely, and driving while license suspended.
Both southbound lanes of the interstate were closed for approximately four hours while troopers investigated the scene.
