A two-door sports car in which three males lost their lives was reduced to a tangle of metal after slamming into a tree on Farrington Highway in Kapolei late Monday night.

Because the Nissan Coupe 350Z is a car with only two front seats and no area for passengers in the rear, it’s unclear where one of the two passengers was sitting at the time of the crash.

Two of the victims were confirmed as Hawaii Tokai International College students from Japan: Takumi Yamamoto, 19, and Norihito Shigeta, 20.

“Hawaii Tokai International College (HTIC) regretfully confirms that two of the victims of last night’s fatal single-car crash in Kapolei were students at HTIC,” the school said in a written statement. “The students are from Japan and their families have been notified. We are still awaiting official confirmation of the identity of the third victim. We respectfully request privacy and the understanding of the media as our community supports and provides outreach to our students. Our thoughts are with the students and their families during this difficult time.”

After the crash the mangled wreckage was towed to a lot at Campbell Industrial Park. While city crews had cleared the fractured tree and broken branches at the crash scene by Tuesday morning, yellow tape surrounded debris from the strewn wreckage. Next to the sidewalk were broken glass, pieces of metal and plastic, and two broken wiper blades.

The fatalities have again brought the ongoing problem of speeding along Farrington Highway to the forefront as a public safety issue.

“This road (is) very dangerous,” said Thomas Park of the Malanai subdivision, who lives near the crash site on Farrington Highway between Noulu Street and Kowelo Avenue. “Every time speed over here,” he said Tuesday.

Police said speed was a factor in the single-car crash at approximately 11:15 p.m.

Police said the driver was traveling town-bound on the highway in a gray, two-door Nissan Coupe 350Z at a “high rate of speed” when the vehicle lost control, traveled onto a sidewalk and slammed into a tree.

The three victims were pronounced dead at the scene. The Honolulu Medical Examiner’s Office has yet to release the names of the three males pending notification of next of kin.

Police closed the highway between Noulu Street and Kowelo Avenue until about 4 a.m. as officers from the Honolulu Police Department’s Traffic Division investigated.

Park, a 20-year-resident of Welowelo Street, said vehicles, motorcycles and mopeds often speed on the four-lane thoroughfare and that police should be checking for speeders along the roadway more often.

“So sad,” he said of the three males who died. Park was home at the time of the crash and said he heard a “loud crash” coming from the highway.

Resident Ofelia Braceros said she and her husband were watching television when they heard a loud bang followed by multiple clanging sounds. Soon after, the couple heard sirens.

Resident Dorian Acierto said she was sleeping when she was awakened by the sound of the crash. “It was super loud.” Like Park, Acierto has also lived on Welowelo Street for approximately 20 years. She concurred that speeding regularly occurs on the roadway.

Monday’s fatalities bring the total on Oahu this year to 49 traffic-related deaths compared with 44 at the same time last year.