Paia man dies from Haiku crash injuries

WAILUKU - The 18-year-old Paia man who was critically injured in a crash in Haiku on Thursday has died, Maui police said. Kepa Kahakauwila was pronounced dead at the Maui Memorial Medical Center early Friday evening, police said.

On Thursday around 5:30 p.m. Kahakauwila had been driving a blue Toyota pickup truck that was heading west toward Kahului and was near Holokai Road on Hana Highway when it veered right and collided into a guardrail, overturned and landed in a gulch, police said.

Two passengers were in stable condition following the accident. Police said Monday that one of the men was treated then released, while the other was flown to Oahu for medical treatment.

The traffic death was the eighth so far this year on Maui County roads, compared with 11 fatalities at the same time last year.