A motorcycle crash early this morning in Hilo left a man dead.
At 12:36 a.m., Hilo patrol officers responded to a single-vehicle collision on Kilauea Avenue, and determined that a southbound 1990 Yamaha motorcycle crossed the center line on Kilauea Avenue just before the Puainako Street intersection and crashed head-on into a utility pole.
The rider and only occupant of the motorcycle, a 45-year-old Mountain View man, was unresponsive at the scene of the collision, and was taken by ambulance to Hilo Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead at 1:40 a.m.
Police say the man wasn’t wearing a helmet. His identity is being withheld at this time pending positive identification and notification of next of kin.
At this time, according to police, speed and inattention appear to be primary factors in the crash. An autopsy has been ordered to determine the exact cause of death.
A coroner’s inquest has been initiated and police are asking potential witnesses to call the police nonemergency line at (808) 935-935-3311 or Crime Stoppers at (808) 961-8300.