HAWAII COUNTY POLICE DEPARTMENT
AREA I OPERATIONS BUREAU
ASSISTANT CHIEF CHARLES M. CHAI
PHONE: 961-2341
MARCH 24, 2004
MEDIA RELEASE
Four persons were killed Wednesday (March 24, 2004) when their Toyota sedan collided with a tour mini-bus on the Volcano Highway (Route 11) near Glenwood, Puna.
The four adults, whose names are being withheld pending notification of next of kin, were riding north toward Hilo in a Toyota Matrix about 11:40 a.m., witnesses said, when the sedan lost control, crossed the centerline and collided with the mini-bus at about the 20-mile marker. Passengers in the mini-bus, all tourists from California and Taiwan, were taken to the Hilo Medical Center, where they were treated for minor injuries and released.
Because of the debris caused by the crash, police officers at the scene closed the highway for about two hours.
Wednesday’s deaths bring the number of traffic fatalities on the Big Island so far this year to 12, compared to three at the same time last year.
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