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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Tuesday, March 27, 2007

Two die in separate car accidents

By Rod Ohira
Advertiser Staff Writer

Two men died yesterday from injuries suffered in separate one-car accidents on O'ahu.

A man, 64, was crushed to death in the driveway of a Kalani Valley home in the 1400 block of Kalaniiki Street at about 2:15 p.m. by his 2007 S550 Mercedes-Benz sedan. The death is classified as a nontraffic fatality since it occurred on private property; it's the third on O'ahu this year.

A 26-year-old man who was driving a 2001 Volkswagen Jetta that flipped over March 10 in the Wai'anae-bound lanes of the H-1 Freeway near Makakilo died at about 8 a.m. at The Queen's Medical Center, according to police vehicular homicide investigators.

The Honolulu medical examiner's office identified the man as Paul C. Leapaga of Wai'anae. Leapaga's death marked O'ahu's 24th traffic fatality of the year and seventh this month.

The Jetta crash killed passenger Sione Tamale, 25, and injured another male passenger, whose condition is unknown.

Police investigating the driveway death said the man did not put the car into park and was crushed by the driver's side door, which pinned him against a wall of the house. He was pronounced dead at 2:30 p.m. The medical examiner's office did not release the name of the man yesterday pending confirmation of his identity.

Reach Rod Ohira at rohira@honoluluadvertiser.com.