Woman Struck by Vehicle in Kea’au Dies

Google Maps image.

A woman was found dead early Monday morning in Kea’au along Highway 130 near Kaloli Drive.

According to the Hawai’i Police Department, a 22-year-old Hilo man walked in to the Hilo Police Station at 1 a.m. on Monday to state that he might have been involved in an accident. Officers made checks in the area and found the body of an unidentified woman on the mauka side of Highway 130, about a tenth of a mile south of Kaloli Drive.

HPD officers determined that the woman may have been walking towards Pahoa when she was struck by a 2003 Ford Ranger pick-up truck, which was traveling south.

At the time, the woman was wearing a black t-shirt and blue jeans. She is described as local with brown hair and between 25-30 years old.

According to police, negligent homicide, accident involving death or serious bodily injury, and no operator’s license cases have been opened. It is not known if speed, drugs, or alcohol may have contributed to the incident.

The woman was taken to Hilo Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead at 6:09 a.m. She is the sixth fatality on Big Island roads this year.

Anyone with information on the identity of the victim or may have information on the incident should call Officer Keith Nacis at 961-8119 or the HPD non-emergency line at 935-3311.