A Siloam man was killed Monday morning when he was struck by a tractor-trailer on U.S. 52 South, near the Cook School Road exit.
Marvin H. Bledsoe Sr., of Siloam, 85, had for some reason stopped his car on the shoulder of the southbound lane of U.S. 52, then wondered into oncoming traffic when he was struck, according to North Carolina Highway Patrol First Sgt. J.M. Church.
The sergeant said officials do not yet know why Bledsoe had exited his car. “It was nearby, and wasn’t broken down,” Church said.
David Speight, interim Surry County Emergency Services director, said the incident occurred shortly after 6 a.m., when conditions were still dark. He said that Bledsoe was standing or walking in the right-hand traffic lane when he was struck.
“He was dead-center in the land when the tractor trailer hit him,” Church said, adding the victim’s car was well off the highway, so Bledsoe wasn’t struck while exiting his car, but well afterward.
The speed limit on that section of highway is 65 mph.
“There is no indication at all he (the truck driver) was speeding…there are no contributing circumstances on the part of the tractor-trailer driver,” he said.
Church said it’s not clear why Bledsoe was in the highway — whether he was experiencing a medical emergency or some other issue will hopefully be revealed by an autopsy.
Church added that there are no charges against the truck driver, who was driving a vehicle for Petroleum Transport Company in Pilot Mountain.
The incident closed down the southbound portion of U.S. 52 for more than two hours, with traffic backed up for miles.
He said Patrolman J.C. DeGraff officially handled the case, and is still investigating the incident.