NA PALI COAST — Two Hanalei men adrift on Na Pali Coast in a 14-foot Boston Whaler were rescued Wednesday afternoon by a commercial tour boat operator, a county news release states. The men left Hanalei River on the Boston
NA PALI COAST — Two Hanalei men adrift on Na Pali Coast in a 14-foot Boston Whaler were rescued Wednesday afternoon by a commercial tour boat operator, a county news release states.
The men left Hanalei River on the Boston Whaler early Tuesday and were scheduled to return at 3:30 p.m.
The father of one of the men contacted the Coast Guard Wednesday afternoon and reported that that his son and his friend had not returned.
At around 3 p.m., Coast Guard officials contacted the Hanalei fire station to inform them of the situation and later requested their assistance with conducting a shoreline search for the missing men via helicopter.
As the Hanalei firefighters were preparing to leave the station, the Coast Guard informed them that they heard Capt. Lonnie Swain of Catamaran Kahanu on VHF radio saying that he had located the men about one mile off the coast of Miloli‘i and that he would be bringing the men on board his boat.
From there, Swain said he planned to transfer them to another company’s Zodiac and have them taken to Port Allen.
With the boating season approaching, fire officials are reminding boaters to practice safe boating.
“I urge everyone to follow the rules and regulations of boating to prevent injuries and accidents,” Battalion Chief Theodore Williams said in the release.
He noted that information regarding safe boating is readily available through the Coast Guard and the state Department of Land and Natural Resources’ Boating Division.
