A woman was killed and two others were injured Friday evening in a head-on collision on Highway 11 in South Kona.
A woman was killed and two others were injured Friday evening in a head-on collision on Highway 11 in South Kona.
The woman who died was the lone occupant of one of the vehicles involved in the crash near mile marker 97, south of the Kona Paradise subdivision, said Hawaii Police Department Sgt. Grad Elarionoff from the scene late Friday. A man and woman were in the other vehicle.
According to a written statement from the Hawaii County Fire Department, the 34-year-old woman who died was driving a small compact car, while the others, a 66-year-old man and a 66-year-old woman were in a mid-sized pickup truck. The man was pinned inside the truck on the driver’s side, and had to be extricated.
Hawaii Fire Department Battalion Chief John Whitman said fire rescue personnel responded at 7:19 p.m. to find the woman dead on arrival.
Medics transported the injured victims in serious condition to Kona Community Hospital. Initially, a helicopter was dispatched to the scene, however, it was canceled en route because their injuries did not require the immediate transport, Whitman added.
Highway 11 remained closed for several hours after the crash between mile markers 96 and 97 while police investigated.
The woman’s death is the second traffic fatality on Big Island roads this year compared to none at this time last year.
Hawaii Tribune-Herald reporter John Burnett contributed.
Email Chelsea Jensen at cjensen@westhawaiitoday.com.