HAWAII COUNTY POLICE DEPARTMENT
TRAFFIC ENFORCEMENT UNIT
SERGEANT LEROY VICTORINO
PHONE: 961-2332
JULY 25, 2003
H-57193/KN
MEDIA RELEASE
A 61-year-old man died Thursday (July 24, 2003) after he was struck by a loose tire in Laaloa, North Kona.
The victim was identified as Clifford Vierra, of a Captain Cook address.
Responding to an 8:29 a.m. call on Laaloa Avenue in the White Sands subdivision of Kona, police learned that Vierra, an inspector with CTS Earth Moving Inc., was conducting an inspection of the pavement on Laaloa Avenue when a tire came off the rear axle of the dumper-trailer of a 1987 Peterbuilt truck driven by Newton Kekahio, 42, of a Waikoloa address. Gaining momentum after breaking loose from the trailer, the tire struck Vierra on the road, and then continued rolling west on Laaloa, damaging several mailboxes, a sign and a rock wall before coming to a stop.
Vierra was taken to the Kona Community Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 9:02 a.m. Traffic Enforcement Unit officers are continuing an investigation into the fatality.
Vierra’s death was the 16th traffic fatality so far this year on the Big Island, compared to 15 at the same time last year.
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