A Virginia couple visiting Hawaii for the first time were killed in Monday’s head-on car collision in Kahuku.
Family members who identified the couple as Michelle Hartman, 55, and Ronald Hartman, 62, of Norfolk are in shock.
“I don’t think any of us had really processed what’s happened,” said cousin Tiffany Smith, adding the couple has two other adult children.
Michelle and Ronald Hartman died after a Ford truck crashed head-on into a Hyundai sedan on Kamehameha Highway near Gunstock Ranch at about 1:05 p.m. Monday. Their daughter, 30-year-old Holly Hartman, was critically injured in the crash.
Honolulu police said a Ford truck driven by a 27-year-old Oahu resident was traveling northbound on the highway, weaving in and out of traffic to pass vehicles.
The truck then crossed over the centerline and crashed head-on with a Hyundai sedan traveling in the opposite direction, police said.
Michelle Hartman, who was driving the Hyundai at the time, was taken to a hospital where she died from injuries she sustained in the crash. Her husband, a rear-seat passenger, was pronounced dead at the scene and their daughter, who was in the front passenger seat, was taken in critical condition to a hospital.
The Ford driver was also taken in critical condition to a hospital.
Police said speed appears to be a factor.
Smith’s mother was en route to Hawaii from Virginia on Thursday to be with Holly Hartman, who underwent seven surgeries so far for multiple broken bones and severe internal injuries. “She’s alone,” Smith said.
The family’s pastor also traveled to Hawaii.
The Hartman family was vacationing in Hawaii for the first time, where Holly participated in the Spartan Race at Kualoa Ranch this past weekend. Her parents traveled to Oahu to support her.
Smith said Michelle and Ronald Hartman were involved in church and made a huge impact in their close-knit community in Norfolk. “Both of them were like the neighborhood grandparents,” she said in a phone interview from Virginia.
Michelle Hartman was a doula and a member of a choir group, Sweet Adelines. Her husband created a huge, fenceless garden on their property so neighbors could pick up vegetables, Smith added. “They were very, very giving people.”
Smith said she and her family are thankful for the outpouring of support from Hawaii residents. “We are very appreciative and grateful for the people of Hawaii. They have been extremely generous … It has touched us so much.”
Honolulu police have opened a double manslaughter and second-degree assault investigation into the crash. No arrests have been made at this time.
Anyone who may have witnessed the crash is urged to call CrimeStoppers at 808-955-8300. The public also may send anonymous tips to honolulucrimestoppers.org or via the P3 Tips app.
Smith created a GoFundMe account at 808ne.ws/hartmanfamily to help Holly Hartman with medical expenses and to bring her parents back to Virginia. The account also was set up to help with the couple’s funeral expenses.
