Royston Man Identified as Driver of Pick Up that Plunged Into Lake Hartwell New Year’s Eve

Authorities have released the name of the driver of a pick-up truck that drove off the  Broken Bridges in Stephens County and plunged into Lake Hartwell on New Year’s Eve.

Tuesday evening, Stephens County Sheriff Randy Shirley identified the driver as 49-year old William Norton of Royston.

Shirley said Norton was often seen at Stephens County park.

“A retired deputy and his wife know him and said they would see him quite often when they would go down to walk every morning, and he was always by himself,” Shirley said. “He was driving his girlfriend’s truck.”

Shirley said Norton’s girlfriend and a cousin came to the scene Tuesday and gave authorities information about where his father lived in Royston. His parents were then notified by the Hart County Sheriff.

On New Year’s Eve, witnesses on the South Carolina side of the lake reported seeing a pick up truck plunge off a section of the bridge and into the lake.

“Just a little after 11p last night, we received a 911 call of a vehicle accident in which a pick up truck went through the barriers at the old Highway 123 bridge, went through the fencing at the end of the bridge and plunged into Lake Hartwell,” Stephens County Sheriff Randy Shirley said Tuesday. “There were three witnesses on the South Carolina side that saw the truck go into the water.”

Shirley said the witnesses told authorities they heard a lot of splashing and called to the victim to swim towards their flashflight, but then it went quiet.

“It was about 1:30a this morning when a body was discovered on the South Carolina side floating downstream from the area,” the Sheriff said. “Then a little later, the pick up truck was discovered in about 35 feet of water.”

The Sheriff said the efforts of divers with Stephens County and Oconee County, SC  to reach the truck were hampered by water releases from Yonah Dam and the muddy lake waters.

But by evening, crews were able to retrieve the truck using flotation devices. No other victims were found inside the vehicle, according to the Sheriff.

Shirley also dispelled a rumor on social media that there may have been as many as five people in that pick up when it went into the lake.

“There were some teenagers at Stephens County Park around that same time setting off fireworks. Our dispatchers were able to ping one of the teen’s cellphones and was able to locate that individual,” he said. “From that we were able to confirm that all five teens are safe and were not involved in this accident.”

The Sheriff said the incident is still under investigation and more information could be released once the autopsy is complete and the results of toxicology reports are released.