Accident snarls Kalaniana'ole commute
By Brandon Masuoka and Suzanne Roig
Advertiser Staff Writers
A two-car accident yesterday morning near Kalani High School sent two women to the hospital and tied up townbound rush hour traffic.
Bruce Asato • The Honolulu Advertiser
The accident happened just before 6:35 a.m. on Kalaniana'ole Highway when a Saturn collided head-on with a Ford Taurus near Kalaniiki Street, police said.
Townbound motorists found their morning commute tougher yesterday because of a two-car accident near Kalani High School.
They said a woman in her 70s driving the Saturn suffered a seizure, crossed into townbound traffic and hit the Taurus, driven by a woman in her 40s, and a guard rail.
Police closed the townbound lanes for ambulance and fire personnel. Two lanes were reopened after ambulance and fire crews left the scene, and all lanes reopened at 7:25 a.m.
The two drivers were taken to the Queen's Medical Center. One was listed in stable condition and the other was in guarded condition, according to a hospital spokeswoman.
The accident paralyzed traffic all the way to Lunalilo Home Road in Hawai'i Kai. Some motorists said they took an alternate route through Waimanalo to get to work.
Parents trying to get their children to school in Niu Valley spent 25 minutes or more making their way down the two miles of Lunalilo Home Road.
At Koko Head Elementary School, the list of tardy children was twice as long as normal. One teacher brought her preschooler with her to class because it was impossible to get her to day care before work.
Motorists waited out the delays in boredom or on cell phones.
"The next time I'll just stay home and wait it out," said Gloria Fowler of Hawai'i Kai. "We would have stayed home and watched TV until it cleared."
