BRIEF: Motorcyclist Dies in Sunday Afternoon Crash

A late afternoon motorcycle accident has claimed the life of 24-year-old Laupahoehoe resident Dmitri I. Sheehan, according to local authorities.

Hawaii Island Police says that a call was received at 4:08 p.m. on Sunday, and patrol officers on the scene learned that Sheehan was doing a “wheelie,” described as a move where the motorcycle is raised off of the ground while the bike is being driven on its back wheel. Officers determined that Sheehan lost control of his motorcyle and ran off of the right side of Kalanianaole Highway, just east of Koloa Street, hitting a street sign.

Police determined that speed was a factor in the crash, and an autopsy has been ordered to determine an exact cause of death. Sheehan is the fifth traffic fatality on the island, which matches the number of traffic casualties at the same time last year.