Carelessness cited in off-road wreck
By Eloise Aguiar
Advertiser Staff Writer
The area where a Hau'ula teen was killed when a pickup truck flipped and landed on him Thursday night is part of a 420-acre wetland surrounded by hills and offering a variety of terrain that is visited by pig hunters, hikers, motorcycles, bikes and off-road vehicles, say those familiar with the location.
The medical examiner's office yesterday identified the victim as Kurt Ching. The Kahuku High School senior died when the truck he was in rolled over, tossing him from the bed of the vehicle and crushing him. Four other teenagers in the 1986 Toyota pickup escaped injury.
Police said the truck was being driven in a "careless manner" by a 19-year-old male.
Off-road driving is considered an extreme activity, even by those who modify four-wheel-drive trucks for a living. It's an activity practiced on O'ahu by only a few hundred enthusiasts, and most of them stick to organized events.
It's an even smaller group of people who take their vehicles off the road — where it's not always safe — to race around testing the trucks and their ability, said Tommy Gibson, owner of TG Auto Customs & Repair.
Gibson said people serious about the sport would not have done what the driver of the Toyota did.
"People in the back of a vehicle, especially going fast over bumpy terrain, that's a no-no," Gibson said.
The accident occurred on a ranch in He'eia wetland, which is owned by the state. It's unclear whether the driver had permission to be on the property.
The location is off Kahekili Highway near the "big dip" between Ha'iku Road and Hui Iwa Street. The crash occurred at 6 p.m.
The well-worn dirt road into the wetland about 650 feet off Kahekili
Highway falls off at an incline, levels and then curves out of sight.
A water puddle and muddy conditions made it questionable whether a vehicle could get out of the site once it went down the incline.
Donna Camvel, who belongs to organizations that want to restore the wetland, said off-roading is inappropriate there because it tears up the land, which is federally protected.
Destruction to property has caused the city and state to block off popular areas, Gibson said, but 9/11 has also prompted the military to close sites, leaving fewer legally-accessible areas available.
The number of people modifying trucks and getting into off-road activities has dropped because of fewer areas to drive in, strict vehicle reconstruction regulations and the cost, said Anthony Mattson, with Pacific Automotive & Performance Center.
A person could spend as much at $30,000 to build an off-road vehicle and he probably wouldn't want to test it in the mud, Mattson said. "The more you spend, the less likely you'll get it dirty."
Reach Eloise Aguiar at eaguiar@honoluluadvertiser.com or 234-5266.
