Accidents Back Up Hilo-Bound Traffic on Highway 130

Two one-car accidents caused delays for those commuting to Hilo from lower Puna this morning.

Both occurred near the 3-mile marker on Highway 130 on a stretch which lacks side roads that would lend to a detour.

The first involved a car running off the road at about 7:25 a.m., which required the services of a tow truck.

The second happened at 7:56 a.m., but the driver of that vehicle was able to drive from the scene.

A police department spokeswoman said that the incidents slowed traffic but neither required closure of the highway, also known as the Keaau-Pahoa Road.

The result, however, was that cars were bumper-to-bumper back to Maku`u Drive, a stretch of about four miles.

The traffic in the Hilo direction eased by about 9 a.m.

The traffic back-up was not as serious as the one caused by an accident involving five vehicles that occurred on Feb. 5, when morning rush-hour traffic was halted for more than an hour.