Maui motorcyclist suffers life-threatening injuries in crash on Honoapiʻilani Highway

A motorcyclist is hospitalized in critical condition after he was struck by a vehicle on the Honoapiʻilani Highway in Kāʻanapali on Friday evening.

The 35-year-old Lahaina man was operating an orange 2017 KTM motorcycle and was traveling south within the inner lane of the highway when he collided into a white 2024 Chevrolet Suburban that was making an illegal left turn onto the highway from the parking area of 2580 Kekaʻa Drive, according to a preliminary police investigation.

The incident occurred at approximately 7:10 p.m. on the highway, 0.4 miles south of Kekaʻa Drive.

As a result of the collision, the operator of the motorcycle sustained critical life-threatening injuries and was transported to the Maui Memorial Medical Center Emergency Room where he remains.  

Police say the operator of the Suburban, a 37-year-old woman, and her passenger—a 41-year-old man, both of Washington State, were not injured. The operator of the Suburban was transported to the Wailuku Police Station and was subsequently placed under arrest for first degree negligent injury and was released pending further investigation.  

The police investigation reveals that at the time of the collision, the motorcyclist was wearing a helmet.  The operator and passenger of the Suburban were wearing their seatbelts and the vehicle’s airbags did not deploy. The involvement of speed, drugs, and alcohol is pending as the investigation is ongoing.