JAMM AQUINO / JAQUINO@STARBULLETIN.COM Honolulu firefighters tended to spillage caused by the overturn of a large truck headed east on the H1 freeway yesterday afternoon near the Old Waialae Road overpass.

Crash and fuel spill snarl H-1 freeway

The truck's driver claims that a motorist cut him off

Eastbound H-1 freeway and South King Street became a virtual parking lot yesterday afternoon after a dump truck crashed into the concrete median and fell on its side, spilling diesel fuel onto the freeway.

The crash happened at 12:44 p.m. just before the Kapiolani Boulevard onramp, shutting down the eastbound lanes of the freeway for about four hours.

The 39-year-old driver told police and his employer that he was traveling east on the freeway when a car cut him off, forcing him to swerve to avoid a collision. The truck hit the concrete median instead, then fell on its side, blocking the left and middle lanes of traffic. Diesel spilled from the middle lane to the right side of the freeway. The truck bed was empty.

Police diverted eastbound traffic off the freeway at the King Street offramp. Motorists could get back onto the freeway via the Kapiolani Boulevard onramp.

Debris from the median struck two cars on the westbound side of the freeway, said Lt. Gerrit Kurihara, of the Honolulu Police Department. None of the cars' occupants were injured. However, police were forced to close the left westbound lane.

All lanes of traffic were reopened by 4:43 p.m.

When police arrived, the driver had already exited the truck, Kurihara said.

"The driver appeared to have minor injuries, initially, and was walking around but became agitated," he said.

Kurihara said the driver pushed one of the officers.

JAMM AQUINO / JAQUINO@STARBULLETIN.COM A truck overturned while headed east on the H-1 freeway yesterday, shutting down traffic.

The driver disagrees with HPD's account of what happened after police officers arrived, said Rey Burgess, safety director for K D Construction, the company that owns the truck. Burgess said the driver suffered head and rib injuries.

"He's pretty beat up," he said.

Police took the driver to the Queen's Medical Center and then to HPD's main station. The driver was charged with disorderly conduct and was released after posting $50 bail.

Burgess said the driver has been driving for K D Construction for four years.

"This kid is a good driver. We don't have any incidents that I'm aware of regarding accidents with him. I believe his story regarding somebody cutting him off," he said, "We hope to find witnesses to the accident."

Witnesses should call HPD's Traffic Division or 911, Kurihara said.

The diesel came from two 85-gallon tanks on the right side of the truck, said Capt. Kenison Tejada, Honolulu Fire Department spokesman. When firefighters arrived, one of the tanks still had fuel in it while the other had emptied all of its contents, he said.

Firefighters spread material on the roadway to soak up the diesel that had spilled across all three eastbound lanes. Some fuel had even migrated uphill past the truck, probably by motorists who snaked past the truck after the crash, Tejada said.