Drunk driver Dylan Katekaru
A utility worker was hospitalized in critical condition after he was hit by a car in the Punchbowl area early Wednesday morning.
It happened at around 12:40 a.m. on the Punchbowl Street on-ramp onto the H-1 Freeway westbound.
Police tell us a 22-year-old driver was traveling westbound when he lost control of his car, rear-ended a utility vehicle, and struck a guard rail.
Police say he then hit a 47-year-old utility electrical worker who was working on a highway lighting project. The man was pinned between the car and a utility boom truck.
Dylan Katekaru was arrested for driving under the influence and negligent injury. He has not been charged.
Police say alcohol is a factor in the crash, but it is unknown if speed is one as well.
Police tell us the victim was working on installing LED light fixtures to the Punchbowl tunnel and beneath the Queen Emma Street overpass.
We reached out to the company where the victim worked, but no one was ready to talk.
The state Department of Transportation says the crash victim is an electrician who was contracted to work on the state’s lighting improvement project.
When it comes to working on Hawaii’s highways, what are the dangers workers face?
Amber Le owns Liberty Tow Hawaii, an emergency tow service company.
She tells her drivers “to stay as safe as possible. We need to put out the cones. We all took the same class here. For all the tow truck drivers on the island, we take the same safety class. We have to put out the cones. If it’s dark, we even have our flashlights that we put out. Our flashlights are on this pulsating setting, so that people are aware when they are approaching.”
Le says drivers need to merge over, because they are traveling too fast, and it creates a dangerous work environment for people trying to help others get off the highway.
“We do these jobs that no one else will do, and we have a family of our own,” Le said. “It just pains me to know that there are so many reckless people out there, doing these incredible horrible things like drinking and driving, and we have to pay for it with our lives.”
We asked Honolulu police and the state Department of Labor and Industrial Relations how often workers are injured on the highway.
Both said they do not have that information.
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HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) -
Honolulu police have arrested Dylan Katekaru, 22, in connection with an early-morning crash Wednesday that sent an electrical worker to the hospital in critical condition.
The crash happened around 12:40 a.m. near the H-1 Freeway Queen Emma Street overpass.
Police said the 22-year-old man came from the Pali Highway off-ramp near the H-1 Freeway westbound when he lost control and collided with an electrical utility van that was parked in a construction work zone.
The sedan then skidded into a guardrail and hit a boom truck which pinned the 47-year-old electrical worker who was outside the truck along the freeway.
He was rushed to the Queen’s Medical Center in critical condition.
The driver of the sedan was arrested on suspicion of first-degree negligent injury and operating a vehicle under intoxicants.
Police said alcohol and speed appear to be factors.
Public records indicate the 22-year-old was arrested for drunk driving four years ago.
In 2014, Katekaru's criminal case was dismissed because the arresting officer did not show up for court. Still, his license was suspended for one year.
Six months later, Katekaru was arrested for reckless driving with a suspended license. Again, his case was dismissed because the officer did not come to court.
Also in 2013, Katekaru was cited for speeding going 67 miles an hour in a 45 mile an hour zone. Eight months after that, he was ticketed for speeding in a school or a construction zone.
"This one is especially sad because the person who caused the injury was very young and had a history of traffic infractions, a whole number of them...these were missed opportunities for the system to identify this person as having a problem and hopefully getting him help," said Carol McNamee, founder of MADD Hawaii.
"We really feel for this man who was doing his job and thought he was protected, and yet, an impaired driver still got to him, and we just hope that he does well and he'll be OK," McNamee said.
RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) — Firefighters rescued a construction worker in Raleigh after a trench collapsed on him Thursday morning.
The rescue occurred around 12:30 a.m. in the 900 block of Capital Boulevard just off the Peace Street exit, officials said.
An “entrapment” call came in to authorities around 12:30 a.m. for a man that fell into a 5-foot hole while installing fuel pipes at the gasoline station. Raleigh fire officials said the man on the construction site fell in and then the trench quickly caved in on him.
Emergency crews were able to quickly pull them an out and he was taken to the hospital.
There’s an ongoing investigation into the incident. CBS North Carolina has reached out to the Raleigh Fire Department and North Carolina workplace safety officials to learn more.
Work is back underway at the site now that the man has been removed from the trench.
HORSHAM, Pa. (WPVI) -- A head-on collision has resulted in the death of one driver, and another driver is injured in Horsham, Montgomery County.
It happened around 10:20 p.m. Tuesday at County Line and Keith Valley roads.
A Honda sedan and a Honda SUV collided at the intersection.
Police arrived within minutes and worked to free the drivers.
Both victims were taken to Abington Hospital.
One driver was pronounced dead at the hospital.
The second driver suffered several injuries.
There is no information on the severity of that person's injuries.
Police shut down the intersection for several hours to investigate.
By Derick Hutchinson
Updated: 6:26 AM, June 22, 2017
STERLING HEIGHTS, Mich. - A 22-year-old Roseville woman is dead and two 14-year-old girls are in grave condition after a head-on crash in Sterling Heights.
Police responded to the crash at 2:52 p.m. Wednesday on Utica Road just west of Hayes Road.
Sterling Heights police said a 1999 gold Buick Century was traveling in a lane that was ending, so the 22-year-old driver tried to speed around another car on the shoulder.
Instead, the Buick went onto the gravel, lost control and went across the center line. Police said it slid sideways into oncoming traffic and collided with a gold Chrysler Town & Country minivan.
Three women were trapped inside in the Buick and Sterling Heights firefighters were called to extricate them from the wreckage.
The three women were taken to a nearby hospital, where the driver was pronounced dead. The two teenage passengers were taken to Children's Hospital in Detroit in critical condition, officials said.
A 59-year-old driver and 14-year-old passenger were inside the minivan. They were taken to a nearby hospital with minor injuries and are expected to be OK. They are listed in stable condition.
Utica Road was closed between Hayes Road and Schoenherr from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.
Police said distracted driving, alcohol and drugs do not appear to have been a factor in the crash. Aggressive driving and speed appear to have played a role.
The crash is still under investigation.
Anyone who witnessed the crash is asked to call the Traffic Safety Bureau at 586-446-2920.
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STERLING HEIGHTS, Mich. (WJBK) - A 22-year-old was killed and two teens were critically injured in a head-on crash in Sterling Heights.
Police say that one of the drivers was going the wrong way on Utica Road and Forester, causing the collision with two vehicles just before 3 p.m.
Four people involved were hospitalized with two in critical condition and two in stable condition. The 22-year-old driver killed was from Roseville, while two 14-year-olds inside the vehicle, were critically injured.
Police say the 22-year-old was driving a Buick Century and was improperly trying to pass another vehicle on a gravel shoulder of the road, while northbound on Utica. The driver lost control trying to re-enter the roadway and slid sideways into the path of a Town and Country minivan heading southbound.
The driver of the minivan, a 59-year-old man and 14-year-old passenger from Kimball, are in stable condition with non-life threatening injuries.
The 22-year-old and 14-year-old passengers in the Buick were trapped inside from the force of the crash, and had to be extricated by the fire department. The two teens are currently at Detroit Children's Hospital of Michigan in critical condition.
Police say aggressive driving and speed are suspected to be the cause of the crash and that alcohol and drugs do not appear to be a factor.
Anyone with information on the accident should contact the Sterling Heights Traffic Safety Bureau at (586) 446-2920.
A U.S. Navy sailor who was driving under the influence when she caused a collision by traveling the wrong way on the San Diego-Coronado Bridge has been sentenced to five years probation.
Briana Rall, 24, a member of the U.S. Navy, drove a white Ford Fusion past the toll plaza and onto the bridge just after 4 a.m. on March 27.
When the authorities caught up with the car, Rall had already collided head-on with a Ford F-150 just 300 yards east of the toll plaza.
The driver of the Ford suffered three broken ribs and a swollen heart, officials said.
The driver of a third vehicle, a Dodge Ram pickup, was heading to work on base when he was struck by the F-150. The Dodge driver suffered moderate injuries and was treated at UCSD.
Traffic in both directions was held for several hours while CHP and Coronado police investigated.
Rall previously pleaded guilty to driving under the influence of alcohol causing injury and driving with a measurable blood alcohol causing injury.
A Judge sentenced her to five years probation and 365 days in custody with a work furlough authorized.
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A suspected drunk driver and U.S. Navy sailor who allegedly sped the wrong way onto the San Diego-Coronado Bridge and collided head-on with another car pleaded not guilty to related felony charges from her hospital bed Wednesday.
Briana Rall, 24, a service member in the U.S. Navy, faces a felony driving under the influence charge in the early morning crash on Monday.
Rall, who does not have a prior criminal record, pleaded not guilty through an attorney. Bail was set at $130,000.
The California Highway Patrol (CHP) said a white Ford Fusion was seen driving the wrong way across the bridge. A CHP unit at the toll plaza spotted the wrong way driver, but were not able to catch up to the car before a crash occured.
Head-On Crash Injures 2 Drivers on San Diego-Coronado Bridge
When authorities caught up with the car, it had collided head-on with a Ford F-150 just 300 yards east of the toll plaza shortly after 4 a.m. that morning.
The 49-year-old woman was taken to UCSD Medical Center with major injuries, the CHP official said. She suffered three broken ribs and a swollen heart.
The driver of a third vehicle, a Dodge Ram pickup, was heading to work on base when he was struck by the F-150. The 27-year-old, a U.S. Navy Service member, suffered moderate injuries and was treated at UCSD.
Deputy District Attorney Vasel told NBC 7, the victims invovled in the crash had nowhere to go. They were stuck on the bridge without a way to avoid danger.
"The first victim's vehicle ends up...after she struck her car, ends up on the side of the bridge and thank God it didn't go over," Vasel said. "This felony DUI, these DUI cases and driving over the wrong-way over the Coronado bridge--I mean I can't speak enough, there are so many options here to drive safe.”
Rall suffered minor injuries in the crash.
Traffic in both directions was immediately stopped and held for several hours while CHP and Coronado police investigated.
If convicted, Rall could spent six years in prison. She will appear in court on June 14.
