(BIVN) – A fatal car crash was reported Saturday in Waikoloa; another tragic incident in what is turning out to be a deadly year, thus far, on Hawaiʻi island roadways.

On Saturday, two elderly women were killed in a two-vehicle traffic collision on Waikoloa Road. The road was closed between Waikoloa Village and Queen Kaʻahumanu Highway for several hours as police investigated the scene.

From the Hawaiʻi Police Department:

Responding to a 11:39 a.m. call, police determined that a blue 2020 Kia Soul SUV was heading east (mauka) on Waikoloa Road, near the 3-mile-marker, when the vehicle crossed over the center line and struck a silver 2024 Chevrolet Blazer SUV head-on traveling west (makai).

The driver of the Kia, 72-year-old Lynn Capell of Waimea, was transported to the North Hawaii Community Hospital where she was pronounced dead at 3:17 p.m.

A 75-year-old man from Washington who was operating the Chevrolet, and the front seat passenger, a 77-year-old man from Alabama, were also transported to the North Hawaii Community Hospital for further treatment.

The right rear passenger of the Chevrolet, 79-year-old Eugenia Taylor, from Alabama, was unresponsive at the scene and transported to the Kona Community Hospital where she was pronounced dead at 5:30 p.m.

A third vehicle veered off the road onto lava rock to avoid the crash. The operator of that vehicle, a silver 2023 Chevrolet Equinox, and three passengers, were uninjured but the vehicle was rendered inoperable.

Police say they believe that speed and inattention are factors in the crash. The Area II Traffic Enforcement Unit has initiated a coroner’s inquest investigation, and autopsies have been ordered to determine the exact causes of death. 

The deaths of the two women in Waikoloa are the latest in a rash of fatal traffic crashes on Hawaiʻi island roadways since the start of 2024. The deaths are the 13th and 14th traffic fatalities in the first 13 weeks of 2024, compared to 5 fatalities over the same time period last year. 

Police also noted the two deaths are the second and third traffic fatalities on Big Island roads within 12 hours, after a Hilo motorcyclist was killed in Keaukaha on Friday evening. The Waikoloa Road deaths are also the 6th and 7th traffic fatalities for the month of March. 

Police are asking for anyone who may have witnessed the collision to contact Officer Ansel Robinson at (808) 326-4646, ext. 229, or email at ansel.robinson@hawaiicounty.gov. Tipsters who prefer to remain anonymous may call Crime Stoppers at (808) 961-8300.