A 49-year-old man died yesterday when a trailer of three outrigger canoes broke away from a towing vehicle and crashed into his car on Queen Ka'ahumanu Highway, Big Island firefighters said.

The six-man fiberglass canoes belong to a Maui canoe club on the Big Island for the Queen Lili'uokalani Long Distance Canoe Races this weekend.

The canoes were being towed in the north-bound direction on Queen Ka'ahumanu Highway when the trailer broke away from the vehicle, crossed a gravel center divider and crashed into the 49-year-old man's sport utility vehicle, said Kona Fire Department Capt. Sean Sommers. The front section of one of the canoes crashed into the SUV and snapped off inside the vehicle.

The 8:47 a.m. accident closed the two southbound lanes of the highway. The man suffered head injuries and was taken to Kona Community Hospital where he later died, Sommers said. His name was not released.

The two-day race drew more than 250 paddling crews from around the world.