Texas visitor killed, 4 others hospitalized following Maui crash

Police combed through the debris Sunday night after the crash that left a Texas visitor dead,...
Police combed through the debris Sunday night after the crash that left a Texas visitor dead, and four others injured.(Hawaii News Now (custom credit))
Updated: Jun. 17, 2019 at 11:22 AM HST
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HALIIMAILE, Hawaii (HawaiiNewsNow) - A Texas visitor is dead and several others injured following a crash on Maui Sunday night.

It happened around 9:20 p.m. on Haliimaile Road just southwest of Hoomalie Place.

According to a preliminary investigation, a silver Honda Accord sedan was heading northeast on the highway when the driver — a 23-year-old Paia woman — crossed the center line.

She then crashed into an oncoming Land Rover Discovery SUV. The force from the initial impact was not enough to stop the driver, who continued on left of the center line and crashed into a gray Nissan sedan.

Those in the Nissan sedan suffered the worst injuries. Police said they were all visitors on their way to the airport.

One of the passengers died at the scene. She was identified as 39-year-old Teresa Pham of Spring, Texas.

The driver of the vehicle, a 48-year-old man, along with all of the passengers were taken to the hospital where they remained Monday. According to police, two of the passengers are 50 years old, and another was a 14-year-old juvenile.

A Haiku man said he was flagged down by someone standing near the accident.

“I drove up to the scene, jumped out of my car. I walked out to the first car, which is the silver Honda and I shine my light in and there was a girl trapped in the driver’s seat,” Haiku resident Keoki Cordeiro-Boteilho said.

The Paia woman allegedly responsible for the crash was the only one in that vehicle. The five occupants of the Land Rover Discovery SUV did not need to be transported to the hospital, police said.

The road was closed for several hours overnight for the investigation. It reopened around 2 a.m. Monday.

Maui police are looking into whether speed, drugs or alcohol were factors in the crash. They are also working to figure out if seat belts were being used at the time of the crash.

This is the 10th traffic death for Maui County compared to just four this time in 2018.

This story will be updated.

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