COLUMBIA – The SC Department of Public Safety (SCDPS) will hold a memorial service Saturday, April 30, to remember the more than 950 people killed in traffic collisions in 2015 on South Carolina roadways.

The annual Memorial Service for Highway Fatality Victims will be at 10 a.m. at Bible Way Church, located at 2440 Atlas Road, Columbia. Based on the number of responses, this year’s service is expected to draw almost 600 family and friends of those killed on South Carolina roadways in 2015.

“Losing a loved one in a traffic collision is sudden, unexpected and life-changing,” said SCDPS Director Leroy Smith. “For almost 30 years, this ceremony has provided an opportunity for grieving families and friends to gather with those facing a similar experience. We hope those families will leave knowing that their law enforcement and public servants care and are working every day to prevent future tragedies like the one they have suffered.”

SCDPS Office of Highway Safety and Justice Programs (OHSJP) is coordinating the service, which includes participation from SCDPS law enforcement divisions and public safety agencies from across the state.

State Transport Police Colonel Leroy Taylor, an elder at Bible Way, will deliver the “Message of Hope” again this year, and SCDPS Director Leroy Smith will offer words of comfort and condolence to the families as well. The event also will include a candle lighting tribute, a processional of “first responders” and a tribute video showing the names of those killed in collisions in 2015.

People from across South Carolina, as well as other states, are expected to attend the service. Out-of-state responses have come from Georgia, North Carolina, and Pennsylvania.

The memorial service has been held annually since 1988 to remember residents and visitors who lost their lives on South Carolina’s highways, to bring together families and friends of the deceased and to educate the public in an effort to prevent future loss of life on the state’s roads.

The South Carolina Department of Public Safety includes the Highway Patrol, State Transport Police, Bureau of Protective Services, Office of Highway Safety and Justice Programs, Immigration Enforcement Unit and the South Carolina Law Enforcement Officers Hall of Fame. Our mission is to ensure public safety by protecting and serving the people of South Carolina and its visitors.