73
Hawaii logged 66 traffic-related fatalities in about the first 10 months of the year, according to preliminary statistics from the Hawaii Department of Transportation.
Of the 66 traffic-related fatalities the state counted from Jan. 1 to Oct. 28, a total of 35 involved motor vehicle occupants, 16 involved pedestrians, 12 involved motorcycles and mopeds, and three involved bicyclists.
The total is 15 less than during the same time period last year, but there were 35 fatalities involving motor vehicle so far this year compared to 30 during the same time last year, and three bicyclist fatalities so far this year compared to two the same time last year.
Another bicyclist fatality that resulted from a collision last week with a pickup truck in Kahili was not counted in this set of statistics. A pedestrian fatality that occurred Oct. 30 in Waialae-Kahala was not counted, either, since the statistics are released midweek.
Oahu had the greatest share of fatalities, with 42, followed by Hawaii County, with 13, Kauai County, with six, and Maui County, with 5.
Although traffic may have been reduced due to two cycles of pandemic-related “stay-at-home” orders, police on Maui have noted an uptick in speeding this year. Honolulu police are urging the public to drive responsibly this holiday season, and will be setting up impaired driver checkpoints at unannounced times and locations from now through Dec. 31.
A Wahiawa hit-and-run involving an alleged robbery which resulted in the death of a 73-year-old man in Wahiawa on the morning of Oct. 26 is among the more unusual fatalities counted in the statistics. A 26-year-old U.S. Army soldier has been charged in connection with the incident.
In the early morning hours of Oct. 19, a a 64-year-old man driving a Toyota sedan on Farrington Highway in Nanakuli struck an elderly, male pedestrian in a marked crosswalk, who later died.
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.
TRAFFIC-RELATED DEATHS IN HAWAII
Jan. 1 to Oct. 28, 2020
>> City and County of Honolulu: 23 motor vehicle occupants, 11 pedestrians, 5 motorcycles, 3 bicyclists
>> Hawaii County: 8 motor vehicle occupants, 3 pedestrians, 2 motorcycles
>> Maui County: 1 motor vehicle occupant, 2 pedestrians, 2 motorcycles
>> Kauai County: 3 motor vehicle occupants, 3 motorcycles and mopeds
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