Kona experiences spike in DUI arrests with 15 during first week of September

During the week of September 2-8, Hawai`i Island police arrested 21 motorists for driving under the influence of an intoxicant, 15 of them occurred in Kona.

Three of the arrested drivers were involved in a traffic accident. None of the drivers were under the age of 21.

So far this year, there have been 676 DUI arrests compared with 667 during the same period last year for a slight increase of 1.35%, according to a Hawaiʻi Island police department news release.

The department’s Traffic Services Section reviewed all updated crashes and found 684 major crashes so far this year, compared with 573 during the same time last year for a 19.4% increase.

To date, there were 20 fatal crashes, resulting in 22 fatalities: two of the accidents involved multiple deaths; one was reclassified as a suicide; one was reclassified as a medical condition; and two died at a later date.

The 22 fatalities is a 83.3% increase from the same time period last year when the Big Island had 12 fatalities in 11 crashes.

The police said DUI roadblocks and patrols will continue island wide.