HANALEI — A woman described by acquaintances on Hanalei Bay as a trauma surgeon at The Queen’s Medical Center on O‘ahu suffered an apparent leg fracture in a jump into shallow water at the end of Hanalei Pier Monday shortly before
HANALEI — A woman described by acquaintances on Hanalei Bay as a trauma surgeon at The Queen’s Medical Center on O‘ahu suffered an apparent leg fracture in a jump into shallow water at the end of Hanalei Pier Monday shortly before noon.
The victim’s husband declined to speak to the press at the scene, but some of the witnesses on the beach said the victim’s son wanted to jump off the end of the pier into the water, so the two of them went.
When the woman was brought to shore by a surfer, other women on the beach said she appeared to be in a lot of pain.
The son was not injured, and the son’s age and the victim’s age were not available by press time Monday.
One of the witnesses said she was told the victim had also been a lifeguard when she was younger and should have known the dangers of jumping into shallow water — around three feet — from a height of around 10 feet above the water.
Kaua‘i Fire Department Capt. Kevin Souza confirmed in a county press release the woman jumped off the end of the pier around 11:45 a.m. Monday, suffered the injury, and was helped to shore by a surfer.
Later, county spokesperson Beth Tokioka confirmed that the victim is a visitor from O‘ahu, but did not have the victim’s name and was unsure if she was allowed to release it to the media.
On the beach, the victim received treatment from lifeguards and firefighters, was transported to Wilcox Memorial Hospital via American Medical Response ambulance, and her husband said she would be treated further on O‘ahu.
Without the woman’s name, a Queen’s on-duty supervisor would not give any information on the victim, including information about her employment at Queen’s, and whether or not she became a patient after the accident.
There were hundreds of people nearby on the Memorial Day holiday.
There are no signs on the pier warning of shallow water, though there should be, said Lynn Alapa, whose husband Mitchell Alapa owns and operates Hawaiian Surfing Adventures across Weke Road from the pier and the county’s Black Pot Park.
They seem to recall signs saying no diving from the pier, but one of the Alapas’ grandchildren said she couldn’t recall seeing any signs at the present. Alapa said Monday’s accident was the second injury in two months sustained by someone jumping off the pier.
• Paul C. Curtis, staff writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 224) or pcurtis@kauaipubco.com
