A 90-year-old Kailua-Kona woman died Thursday from injuries she suffered in a single-vehicle crash on Route 190 and the junction with Kalaoa Street in Kailua-Kona. She was identified as Jane K. Ota, according to the Hawaii Police Department.
A 90-year-old Kailua-Kona woman died Thursday from injuries she suffered in a single-vehicle crash on Route 190 and the junction with Kalaoa Street in Kailua-Kona. She was identified as Jane K. Ota, according to the Hawaii Police Department.
Responding to a 2:30 p.m. call, Kona Patrol officers determined Ota, who was the only occupant of a 1999 Ford Escort four-door sedan, was traveling south on Route 190 between the mile markets 32 and 33. As she approached the junction with Kalaoa Street, she lost control and veered across the centerline onto the northbound shoulder and collided with a rock embankment, causing the vehicle to roll onto its roof. Fire rescue personnel extracted her from the car and took her to Kona Community Hospital, where she was pronounced dead at 3:25 p.m.
Route 190 was closed to southbound traffic from about 2:30 to 3 p.m. Thursday.
Police do not believe that alcohol, drugs or speed were contributing factors to this collision.
The Traffic Enforcement Unit has initiated a coroner’s inquest case and has ordered an autopsy to determine the exact cause of death.
Anyone who witnessed the collision should call Officer Justin Hooser at 326-4646 ext. 229.
This is the ninth fatality this year compared with 21 at this time last year, the department said.