A 23-year-old Papaaloa man critically injured in a head-on collision June 16 on Daniel K. Inouye Highway is on a long and painful road to recovery.
Kua Kowardy had driven to Kona to pick up his 25-year-old girlfriend and was returning home when the collision occurred, according to Kowardy’s mother, Nancy Campbell.
According to police, the head-on collision was reported at 9:39 p.m. near the 26-mile marker.
Police determined that a 37-year-old woman was driving a Kona-bound blue Ford Escape sport-utility vehicle when she crossed the centerline and crashed into the white 2003 GMC Safari van driven by Kowardy.
Both drivers and Kowardy’s girlfriend were transported by ambulance to Hilo Medical Center.
Kowardy’s girlfriend was listed in stable condition a day after the collision, police said. She has since been released from the hospital.
The driver of the Ford Escape was treated for what police say “appeared to be a broken left arm and broken ribs.”
Kowardy was initially listed in critical condition and was later medivaced to The Queen’s Medical Center in Honolulu for further treatment.
According to police, a negligent injury investigation was opened into the crash and is ongoing.
Kowardy has been released from the hospital and is in the care of Campbell. She has started a GoFundMe page titled “Help Kua Recover – Near Fatal Head-on Collision.”
“He is now home with me, and I am caring for him 24/7,” Campbell posted on the fundraising page. “I am doing everything I can to get services in place for home health aid through insurance, and at this point, we are just waiting for the red tape which may take another week. It has now been three weeks and while he has improved immensely, it will likely be months before he is walking again, let alone working.
“We are asking for support to cover the myriad of expenses that have not been covered by insurance. I am not able to work right now and am 100% devoted to his care. He will be eligible for disability but all these things take time, and he needs help now.”
As of midday Thursday, the fundraiser had raised more than $8,000 of a $15,000 goal. Those wishing to donate can go online at https://bit.ly/46MUgAg.
“Thank God there was another minor collision nearby, so there were (emergency medical technicians) in the area,” Campbell told the Tribune-Herald on Wednesday. “Otherwise, he likely would’ve died waiting for help.”
Campbell said her son “had to be cut out of the destroyed vehicle,” and that medics at the scene “said it is a miracle he survived.”
“He’s in a lot of pain,” Campbell said. “I think he’s doing as well as can be expected, given the extent of his injuries and the amount of pain that he’s in.
“The day after the accident, he was in surgery for about 10 hours. He has close to 100 broken bones. The brake pedal impaled his left leg. That almost killed him. If the EMTs hadn’t been very close by, he would’ve bled out. He needed a few rounds of blood.”
According to Campbell, Kowardy was a graduate of Hawaii Community College’s agriculture program, had worked as a self-employed landscaper, and for the past six months had been working for Paradise Queen Hawaii, a Hawaiian Paradise Park company that breeds and sells queen honey bees.
“He’s used to being a very physically active young man,” Campbell said. “If he wasn’t working, he was hunting, fishing or hiking. He was very physically active. He did not do a lot of sitting around, I can tell you that.
“So, this is a real challenge for him to be unable to do what’s normal for him and have to rely on other people to help him.”
Campbell said her son had an orthopedic appointment Wednesday in Waimea, and the doctor said “everything is healing, but it’s still broken.”
“Kua won’t be able to put any weight on his left foot for at least three months. So, he’ll be three months in a wheelchair before he can use a walker or crutches. It’s going to be a long recovery,” she said.
Despite the stress and the strain, Kowardy “does have his moments,” according to Campbell.
“A little while ago, he was in the wheelchair, and he was playing chase with the dog in the wheelchair and he was smiling. And that made me happy,” she said. “So, he’s trying to find his moments of feeling OK, but he’s deeply physically traumatized and mentally traumatized.”
And among the plethora of injuries suffered by Kowardy, there is a silver lining or two in the diagnosis that should help with recovery.
“Thankfully, there’s no spinal injuries or head injuries,” she said. … “He’s got a couple of metal plates in his feet. He’s got about three rods in his body — one from his shoulder down his left arm and maybe one in each leg. It’s hard to process just how much metal he has in his body now.
“They said that if he goes down the right healing path, he should be able to hunt and fish and do the things that he loves to do. But he’ll have to learn to live with a certain degree of pain.”
Campbell expressed her gratitude to “the first responders and all the skilled health care workers” who saved her son’s life, but urged motorists to slow down and make better decisions while driving.
“People need to realize that their need to get somewhere in a hurry can completely destroy other people’s lives,” she said. “There are way too many accidents on this island and people driving dangerously.
“It could’ve been worse. but this is pretty bad.”
Email John Burnett at jburnett@hawaiitribune-herald.com.