KILAUEA – A 45-year-old New Jersey man apparently drowned while snorkeling in rough, choppy waters off Larsen’s Beach yesterday afternoon, the Kaua’i Fire Department said. Two beachgoers found the body on the shoreline about 1 p.m. and called authorities for
KILAUEA – A 45-year-old New Jersey man apparently drowned while snorkeling in
rough, choppy waters off Larsen’s Beach yesterday afternoon, the Kaua’i Fire
Department said.
Two beachgoers found the body on the shoreline about 1
p.m. and called authorities for help.
The name of the victim was not
released pending notification of family members on the Mainland.
“The ocean
was rough, the current was strong and the wind was blowing. It was a bad day,”
said Kaua’i Fire Department Battalion Chief Danny Smith.
The man had
lacerations on his forehead and feet and was not breathing when found by
Hanalei Fire Station firefighters who responded to the accident, Smith
said.
Apparently, the wife of the victim drove to Larsen’s Beach at noon
and dropped him off to snorkel, Smith said.
The body was transported to
Wilcox Hospital by a mortuary service, Smith said.
Kaua’i Hospice
representatives were on the beach to offer comfort to the man’s wife.
If an
autopsy confirms the drowning, the man’s death will be the 12th drowning of the
year, and would continue a trend in which an average of 11 drownings are
reported annually on Kaua’i.
That trend was broken in 1997 when six
drownings occurred and in 1998 with four deaths. County officials attributed
the decline to county efforts to curb drownings.
In recent years, the
Kusaka Administration and the Kaua’i County Council have appropriated more
funds to curb drownings. Funds have gone to hire more lifeguards, buy more
rescue equipment and to improve the county’s water safety training.
