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Hawaii tallies 30 traffic-related fatalities in first five months of 2020

CINDY ELLEN RUSSELL / CRUSSELL@STARDVERTISER.COM
                                A male in his 60s was killed, March 1, when the vehicle he was driving struck a concrete rail transit pillar near Kahi Mohala.

CINDY ELLEN RUSSELL / CRUSSELL@STARDVERTISER.COM

A male in his 60s was killed, March 1, when the vehicle he was driving struck a concrete rail transit pillar near Kahi Mohala.

A total of 30 traffic fatalities have taken place from the beginning of the year up to May 28, according to preliminary statistics from the Hawaii Department of Transportation.

The number is only one more than reported the previous week (up to May 21) and five more than in mid-May, but 16 less than the same period last year, when there were 46. The numbers may be relatively low due to pandemic-related “stay-at-home” orders which have reduced vehicles traveling on roadways in March, April and May.

Of the 30 fatalities, 12 involved motor vehicle occupants, 10 involved pedestrians and eight involved motorcycles and mopeds.

Oahu had the greatest share of fatalities, with 16, followed by Hawaii County with eight, Maui County with four, and Kauai County, with two.

The total count does not include the fatality resulting in a traffic collision between a truck and a motorcycle in Kunia on Tuesday night. Police said the 23-year-old motorcyclist died at the scene, and the truck driver was arrested for alleged drunk driving and negligent homicide.

To be counted, a fatal crash must involve a motor vehicle traveling on a traffic way customarily open to the public and result in the death of at least one person within 30 days, according to state officials.

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