Highway crash kills motorist

Hawaii County police closed a stretch of Queen Kaahumanu Highway on Wednesday while officers investigated a fatal traffic collision near Puako Beach Drive.

A 52-year-old man traveling south in a 1997 Ford F-250 pickup truck reportedly crossed the centerline and struck a 2013 Dodge Dart traveling in the opposite direction late Wednesday morning.

The pickup truck’s driver, the vehicle’s sole occupant, was taken to North Hawaii Community Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. The driver of the other vehicle — a 62-year-old Canadian man — and three passengers in the car were uninjured.

Police closed the highway between Puako Beach Drive and the entrance to the Mauna Lani Resort on the Kohala Coast. About 1:15 p.m., one closed lane was reopened on the highway.

Snorkeler dies on Maui beach

A 61-year-old California man who was having trouble swimming to shore in Kaanapali died Monday, Maui police said Wednesday.

Police identified the man as Michael J. Loughran of Napa, Calif.

Police said they responded at 11:59 a.m. Monday to Kaanapali Beach Club for an unresponsive male. Police said the man was snorkeling and was caught in a strong current.

He was having difficulty breathing and held onto a buoy, when a kayaker picked him up and brought him to shore.

He collapsed a short time later, police said.

Medics and Maui Fire Department personnel administered cardiopulmonary resuscitation but were unable to revive the man, and he died at the scene.