Exceeding a height limitation, the mast of a Hyster forklift on a low-boy trailer destroyed a portion of a pedestrian overpass in the Honolulu community of Aiea. No-one was injured.

The explosive noise of the impact scared children in the nearby Aiea Elementary School, police report.

The concrete section of about 30 ft. (9.3 m) moved quickly following contact. The displaced walkway and protective fences came to rest neatly but inconveniently on the forklift's tines. The section weighs about 5 T.

The Hawaii department of transportation estimates the repair cost at up to USD300,000 and intends to require Tibbitts Trucking LLC of Kailua to pay for the reconstruction.

The owner, Don Tibbitts, 59, was driving a dump truck and towing the trailer with the forklift on a Moanalua Freeway exit ramp for traffic en route to Aloha Stadium, Hawaii's largest outdoor arena. The ramp's height limit was posted as 15.5 ft. (4.7 m). After the collision, police shut down freeway traffic in both directions.

The state says Tibbitts had not filed a request with the transportation department's permits office, which is aware of overpass height limitations and regulates movement of oversized loads.

School officials made emergency arrangements to bus those students who normally use the overpass in going to and from their classes. The 16 October incident occurred about 20 minutes before the end of the school day after which the children would have been on the bridge walking toward their homes.