A 64-year-old Hilo man has died days after his motorcycle rear-ended an SUV on Highway 11 in Keaʻau, turning a critical-injury collision into Hawaiʻi Island’s latest traffic fatality.
As outlined by the Hawaiʻi Police Department, Clifford Gouveia was riding a dark blue 2003 Harley Sportster when it struck the rear of a gray 2013 Honda CR-V last Thursday evening. The crash happened around 7:26 p.m. between the Macadamia Nut Road and Kipimana Street intersections, and police said Gouveia was not wearing a helmet.
Gouveia was first taken to Hilo Benioff Medical Center before being flown to The Queen’s Medical Center on Oahu, where he died Monday afternoon at 4:29 p.m. KITV reported that the man had been critically injured in the collision several days earlier.
Police Cite Speed And Inattention
The Honda driver, a 38-year-old man, and a passenger were not injured. Officers with the Area I Traffic Enforcement Unit are continuing the investigation, while police say speed and inattention may have contributed to the crash.
Gouveia’s death brings Hawaiʻi Island’s traffic-fatality total to 21 this year, compared with 14 at the same point last year, according to the police department’s latest update. Anyone who witnessed the collision or has information is asked to contact Officer Jerome Duarte at (808) 961-2339 or [email protected]; anonymous tips can be directed to Crime Stoppers at (808) 961-8300.
