ROWAN COUNTY — One man is dead after a motorcycle crash in eastern Rowan County on Sunday night.

The crash occurred in the 4100 block of Fish Pond Road at approximately 7:30 p.m. on Sunday night. Union Volunteer Fire Department was the first on the scene after being dispatched to a motorcycle crash, and when firefighters arrived they found one man dead, confirmed a fire official on scene.

The crash was a single-vehicle crash, said Trooper Whit Efird, public information officer for the North Carolina State Highway Patrol. The driver, identified as 35-year-old Salisbury resident Nicholas Cody Baird, was driving a 2012 Harley-Davidson motorcycle south along Fish Pond Road, near the Lilly Pad Street intersection, when he travelled off of the right side of the road, said Efird.

Baird struck a culvert, overturning the motorcycle, and then struck a tree, ejecting him from the motorcycle. He died from his injuries at the scene, said Efird.

The highway patrol’s initial investigation indicated that alcohol was a contributing factor to the crash.

Fish Pond Road was closed until at least 10 p.m. on Sunday night to allow the highway patrol to investigate the crash.