3 people seriously injured in head-on collision on Daniel K. Inouye Highway on Big Island

A head-on collision that occurred Tuesday morning on Daniel K. Inouye Highway near the 26 mile-marker left three people seriously injured.

Hilo patrol officers said a gray 2022 Honda CRV operated by a 21-year-old woman from Mountain View was traveling west bound on the highway around 6:30 a.m. She attempted to pass another vehicle and crossed the center line, slamming into a 2015 white Ford F-150 pickup truck driven by a 24-year-old man from Mountain View.

The Honda driver, her 21-year-old male passenger from Mountain View and the Ford pickup truck driver were treated by medics at the scene and transported to the Hilo Medical Center.

The Honda driver, who sustained serious leg injuries, was flown to Queens Medical Center on O’ahu for additional treatment. Her male passenger sustained chest injuries and is undergoing surgery.

The driver of the pickup truck was initially listed as critically injured and is awaiting transport to Queens Medical Center on O’ahu.  

The injured have not been identified.

Investigators with the Area I Traffic Enforcement Unit responded to the scene and police have opened a first-degree negligent injury investigation into the collision. Police believe speeding may have played a role in the crash.

Police ask that anyone who may have witnessed the collision or who may have information about it to please contact the police department’s non-emergency line at 808-935-3311 or investigating Officer Michael Rutkowski Michael.rutkowski@hawaiicounty.gov.