A Columbia pastor died Thursday afternoon when he stepped from in front of his stranded vehicle along I-255 in St. Louis County and was struck by a tractor-trailer.

Steven J. Benke, 50, of St. Louis, was a campus pastor at Faith Lutheran Church in Columbia and also served as a pastor in Jefferson County, Mo.

The accident occurred at 3:55 p.m., according to the Missouri Highway Patrol. Benke was pronounced deceased at the scene. The driver of the tractor-trailer was not injured.