New ocean safety information greets airport visitors

LIHU‘E — Kaua‘i Ocean Safety Bureau personnel, including Chief Kalani Vierra, Kaua‘i Lifeguard Association and the Department of Transportation, Airports Division capitalized on the traffic slowdown to install upgraded ocean safety information at the two baggage claims area at Lihu‘e Airport on Friday.

Vierra, noting the increasing number of people enjoying Kaua‘i’s beaches as the warm summer months come knocking, said the upgraded information is overdue.

“The last time we did this was during the COVID-19 pandemic,” Vierra said. “Everybody had to stay at home.”

Mayor Derek S.K. Kawakami is depicted at the Po‘ipu Beach Park welcoming people to enjoy the beaches in the upgraded video that relays the message of “swim at life-guarded beaches,” and “if in doubt, don’t go out.”

The upgraded water safety video joins the installed rescue tubes that were recently acknowledged by news media as being an effective means of saving lives in beaches and locations where the presence of life guards is not available.

These are further supplemented by a water safety banner inside the airport that greet deplaning airline passengers in the terminal.

Vierra welcomed Friday’s work because of the scope of airport traffic.

“It’s spring break,” Vierra said. “We’re going to get people from everywhere, and one of the first things they want to do when they get here is go to the beach.”

For more information on beach and water safety, visit the County of Kaua‘i’s website at www.kauai.gov or the Kaua‘i Lifeguards Association website at www.kauailifeguards.org.