RON VALENCIANA / SPECIAL TO THE STAR-BULLETIN
A woman was found dead in a vehicle that went into a ditch off Kamehameha Highway near Dole Plantation. According to police, the car was discovered by a passerby at about 9:46 a.m. That was one of two fatal accidents on Oahu early yesterday.
Oahu traffic
fatalities rise
to 49 this yearOne of the victims dies after
pulling over to help change a tire
Two traffic fatalities occurred early yesterday on Oahu -- pushing the total to 49 this year compared with 41 at this time last year, Honolulu police said.
A 28-year-old Mililani man was struck by a car and killed when he pulled to the shoulder of the H-1 freeway westbound, above Lehua Street, at 3:52 a.m. to help another motorist change a flat tire, traffic investigators said.
Later in the morning, an unidentified woman was found dead in a vehicle that went into a ditch off Kamehameha Highway by Dole Plantation. She was believed to be the only occupant of the car, discovered by a passerby about 9:46 a.m., police said. The accident probably occurred early yesterday morning but the car wasn't visible from the road, they said.
The Mililani man was standing at the rear of a white Acura when another white Acura driven by a 17-year-old crossed into the shoulder lane and collided with him, police said.
The victim was pinned between the two Acuras, which continued forward, striking the victim's Ford pickup truck and shoving it into a Nissan.
The victim was pronounced dead at the scene. The 17-year-old was taken to the Queen's Medical Center for treatment of minor injuries, then arrested for negligent homicide.
Friends apparently were traveling together in the four vehicles and the collision was "pretty much a chain reaction," police said. Speed and alcohol may have been factors, they said.
