SOUTH CAROLINA TROOPER DIRECTING TRAFFIC IS HIT

A Highway Patrol trooper was hospitalized Sunday after a vehicle struck his patrol car, which then hit him while he was directing traffic in Goose Creek, authorities said. Trooper M.A. Hodges was expected to be released from the hospital today, said Sid Gaulden, spokesman for the state Department of Public Safety, which oversees the Highway Patrol.

Gaulden said Hodges was directing traffic at Liberty Hall Road when a driver fell asleep at the wheel and crashed into Hodges' patrol car, which was parked nearby with its lights flashing. The patrol car slid about 20 feet and struck Hodges, Gaulden said.

The driver's identity and possible charges were not available Sunday. Gaulden said Hodges had no broken bones or internal injuries.