One man was killed and another seriously injured in a traffic crash last night in Wahiawa. It was the fifth traffic death on O'ahu in the first week of 2009.

The accident at California Avenue and 'Iliwai Drive near Leilehua High School was reported at 9:21 p.m. Emergency personnel said a car was traveling north when it slammed into a guardrail and landed in a ditch.

The driver, a man in his 20s, was pronounced dead at the scene at 9:58, said Bryan Cheplic, spokesman for the city Emergency Services Department. A passenger, described as a man also in his 20s, was taken to The Queen's Medical Center in serious condition.

A third man, believed to be a backseat passenger in the car, fled the scene despite being injured, police said. He had not been located as of 10:30 last night.

Police closed portions of California Avenue and diverted traffic while they investigated the crash.

Three people died in separate accidents on New Year's Day. A woman died in a car crash in Kalihi, and two motorcyclists died in accidents in Village Park and Waipahu.

On Sunday, a 50-year-old man was killed when his bicycle collided with a car near Turtle Bay Resort.