HAWAII COUNTY POLICE DEPARTMENT
TRAFFIC ENFORCEMENT UNIT
SERGEANT SAMUEL V. JELSMA
PHONE: 961-2332
JULY 12, 1999
G-00151
MEDIA RELEASE
A 49-year-old man living in Waikoloa died following a two-car collision Monday (July 12, 1999) at the intersection of Waikoloa Road and Queen Kaahumanu Highway (Route 19) in South Kohala.
The name of the victim, a Japanese national residing in Hawaii, was being withheld until notification of next of kin.
Responding to a 5:13 p.m. accident call, police officers determined that the victim’s 1987 Oldsmobile sedan was making a left turn from Waikoloa Road onto Queen Kaahumanu Highway to head south when it failed to yield the right-of-way to a van heading north on Queen Kaahumanu. The 1998 Toyota van, driven by Mitchell Thompson, 30, of Waikoloa, collided with the victim’s car.
The victim was taken to the North Hawaii Community Hospital in Waimea, where he was later pronounced dead at 7:44 p.m. Thompson, the lone occupant of the the Meridian Hawaiian Resort Transportation van was treated at the scene for minor injuries.
Traffic Enforcement Unit officers are continuing the investigation to determine whether speed or alcohol was involved in the accident. They ordered an autopsy to determine the exact cause of death.
Monday’s fatality was the 15th so far this year, compared to 20 at the same time last year.
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