Hawaii traffic fatalities on the rise as year comes to a close
The number of traffic fatalities in Hawaii is closing in on last year’s numbers, with 103 tallied from the start of the year to Dec. 11, according to the state transportation department’s preliminary statistics.
As of Dec. 11, the Hawaii Department of Transportation has counted 44 fatalities involving motor vehicle occupants, 36 pedestrians, 20 motorcycles and mopeds, and three bicyclists, bringing the total to 103.
The total is six less than the same period last year, when 109 traffic related fatalities were counted.
Compared to the same period last year, there have been more fatalities involving motor vehicle occupants, with 44 this year compared to 36 last year.
Most of the fatalities occurred on Oahu, the most populated isle, with 48 incidents, followed by Hawaii County, with 24 incidents, Maui County, with 21, and Kauai, with 10 incidents.
The breakdown for each county up to Dec. 11 is as follows:
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>> In Honolulu County, there were 15 fatalities involving motor vehicle occupants, 20 pedestrians, 11 motorcycles and mopeds and two bicyclists.
>> In Hawaii County, there were 10 fatalities involving motor vehicle occupants, seven pedestrians, six motorcycles and mopeds and one bicyclist.
>> On Maui County, there were 12 fatalities involving motor vehicle occupants, seven pedestrians and two motorcycles and mopeds.
>> On Kauai County, there were seven fatalities involving motor vehicle occupants, two pedestrians and one motorcycle.
These statistics do not include several fatal crashes that occurred over the weekend on Oahu.
On Saturday morning, Honolulu police said a 69-year-old woman died following injuries from a two-vehicle collision near Turtle Bay Resort on Oahu’s North Shore. The Honolulu Medical Examiner’s office has identified her as Aldana Soren-Kondo of Laie.
On Saturday night, a 20-year-old woman driving northbound on Makakilo Drive at a high rate of speed lost control and collided with a tree. She was pronounced dead at the scene.
Police said the single-vehicle collision was the 50th traffic fatality of this year compared to 60 at the same time in 2018.
To be considered a motor vehicle fatality in the statistics compiled by the HDOT, the fatal crash must involve a motor vehicle traveling on a traffic way customarily open to the public, and must result in a death of at least one person within 30 days of the crash.
