Two men were killed and a woman and her 6-month-old child were critically injured yesterday in a head-on crash on Kuhio Highway, a Kaua'i County spokeswoman said.

The crash happened about 4:20 p.m. in Wailua, near the Hilton Kaua'i Beach Resort.

Kaua'i County spokeswoman Mary Daubert said a 32-year-old Lihu'e man was pronounced dead at the scene and a 42-year-old Kapa'a man, in the second car, died at Wilcox Hospital. The wife of the 32-year-old and their 6-month-old child were critically injured. The two were flown to The Queen's Medical Center last night for treatment.

The Kapa'a man was alone in his vehicle.

The identities of the victims were not released last night.

Daubert said the area where the crash happened is a three-lane stretch of Kuhio Highway, with two northbound lanes and one southbound lane. The roadway was closed after the accident, and all lanes finally reopened about 8:30 p.m., Daubert said.

It's unclear if speed, alcohol or drugs were factors in the crash.

But Daubert said the area is known for traffic accidents.

"We have had a number of accidents along that stretch," she said.

The closure of the roadway after the crash created a traffic nightmare for commuters.

Carol Sibayan, front office manager at the Hilton, said some night-shift employees parked their vehicles and walked to work rather than wait for the road to reopen.

"The traffic was backed up," said Sibayan. "We had employees coming in late."