Hawai‘i Island police have identified the motorcyclist involved in a fatal traffic collision in Hilo in the early morning hours of Saturday, September 2, 2023, as 45-year-old Michael Wilson of Mountain View.
When Hilo patrol officers responded to a single-vehicle traffic collision on Kilauea Avenue at 12:36 a.m. on Saturday, they determined that a 1990 Yamaha motorcycle operated by Wilson was traveling southbound on Kilauea Avenue just before the Puainako intersection, when it crossed the center line and crashed head-on into a utility pole. The motorcyclist was found unresponsive at the collision scene and transported to the Hilo Medical Center by ambulance where he was later pronounced dead at 1:40 a.m.
An autopsy has been scheduled to determine the exact cause of death.
At this time, speed and inattention appear to be primary factors in the crash.
The East Hawaii Traffic Enforcement Unit is continuing their investigation of this traffic collision, which is classified as a coroner’s inquest. Police ask for anyone who may have witnessed the collision or who has information about it to please contact Officer Jared Cabatu at (808) 961-2339, or via email at Jared.cabatu@hawaiicounty.gov. Tipsters who prefer to remain anonymous may call Crime Stoppers at (808) 961-8300.
This is the 12th traffic collision death of 2023, compared to 25 traffic collision deaths this same time in 2022.