UPDATE – (10 p.m. on Wednesday, August 31)

• Police say 62-year-old Allen Y.L. Kealoha of Pahoa was killed on the morning of Wednesday, August 24, seemingly after being struck by the commercial flatbed delivery truck he had been driving.
• Investigators believe Kealoha stopped his truck on the side of the Puainako Street extension near the 3 mile-marker, just above the entrance to the Hilo Hillside subdivision.
• The forensic pathologist who performed the autopsy ruled the death as accidental.

From the Hawaiʻi Police Department:

Hawai’i Island police have identified the victim in the traffic-related incident that occurred last week on Puainako Street in Hilo as 62-year-old Allen Y.L. Kealoha, of Pahoa.

On Wednesday, August 24, 2022, at 6:20 a.m., South Hilo patrol officers responded to the Puainako Street extension near the 3 mile-marker for a report of a male that had reportedly been struck by a vehicle. Responding officers later determined that the victim had stopped his commercial flatbed delivery truck on the side of the road just above the entrance to the Hilo Hillside subdivision. It’s believed the vehicle may have experienced mechanical issues, and that the driver was securing his cargo. Investigators believe the delivery driver was subsequently struck by his own vehicle.

Witnesses reported seeing another vehicle with two male occupants to be in the area around the same time.

The victim was transported to the Hilo Medical Center where he was later pronounced dead.

Area I Criminal Investigation Division and Area I Traffic Enforcement Unit personnel responded to the scene and are continuing this investigation, which is currently classified as a coroner’s inquest.

An autopsy was performed, and based on the known circumstances in this investigation, the forensic pathologist ruled the death as accidental. The final autopsy report is pending.

Police are asking for anyone with information on this incident or who may have been in the area of the Puainako Street extension on the morning of Wednesday, August 24, between 6:00 and 6:20 a.m., to contact the police department’s non-emergency number at (808) 935-331. They can also contact Detective Blaine Morishita of the Area I Criminal Investigation Section at (808) 961-2385 or email him at Blaine.Morishita@hawaiicounty.gov.

Tipsters who prefer to remain anonymous may call the island-wide Crime Stoppers number at (808) 961-8300 and may be eligible for a reward of up to $1,000.00. Crime Stoppers is a volunteer program run by ordinary citizens who want to keep their community safe. Crime Stoppers does not record calls or subscribe to any Caller ID service. All Crime Stoppers information is kept confidential.