An 84-year-old woman was killed yesterday after she was run over and pinned under a 10-wheel tractor-trailer in front of the Chevron gas station in Kahala.

The woman was identified as Florence Tamura of Kaimuki.

Neighbors said Tamura, who lived alone, walked daily from her home to Kahala Mall for exercise.

They often saw her tiny frame leaving in the morning, wearing a hat and clutching a purse.

"She was so sweet," said Karen Martin, who had known Tamura for four years.

Tamura is the sixth pedestrian fatality of the year and the 20th person killed on O'ahu roads in 2008.

Traffic police said Tamura was walking west on the sidewalk about 8:40 a.m. when she was hit by a Coca-Cola delivery truck pulling out of the Chevron station onto Wai'alae Avenue. Witnesses said Tamura was run over by the right front tires of the truck and then apparently partially run over by the next set of tires on the tractor portion of the tractor-trailer. The driver of the truck had to back up to free her, a witness said.

Troy Hotz, 36, manager at the station, saw Tamura get hit and dashed over to help.

He said she was answering his questions, but was very badly injured.

"It was tough to see," said Hotz, who was visibly shaken.

Tamura was initially taken to The Queen's Medical Center in critical condition.

She was pronounced dead at the hospital at 11:32 a.m., the Honolulu medical examiner's office said.

The 37-year-old driver of the truck was not injured.

Hotz said the driver had just made a delivery at the station when he hit Tamura as he was pulling out.

Coca-Cola representatives did not return calls for comment; Hotz said the driver was a regular.

Speed, drugs and alcohol were not likely factors in the crash, police said.

Bruce Bottorff, spokesman for AARP Hawai'i, an advocate for pedestrian safety, said the case highlights the responsibility both drivers and pedestrians have.

"The only thing we can do is to let drivers know just what a huge responsibility it is to be behind the wheel," he said. Pedestrians, he added, also need to be aware of their surroundings and always be on the lookout. "We need to be extremely mindful," he said.

Martin, Tamura's neighbor, said Tamura was a very careful walker and had never had any close calls.

She said Tamura would leave for her walk after waking up early to tend to her immaculately tidy garden.

Martin added that she often asked Tamura if she wanted a ride to Kahala to get groceries or do errands.

But Tamura would always decline, saying the walk was her only source of exercise.