LIHU‘E — A 39-year-old man was pronounced dead at 7:45 a.m. Friday morning after he was discovered in the waters off Nawiliwili.
LIHU‘E — A 39-year-old man was pronounced dead at 7:45 a.m. Friday morning after he was discovered in the waters off Nawiliwili.
The Kaua‘i Police Department identified the man as Shane Uzzek of Hudson, Florida.
The man was reported missing at around 3:30 a.m. Friday morning.
According to Kaua‘i U.S. Coast Guard Station Chief Petty Officer Timothy Elhajj, two swimmers had been cliff jumping near Running Waters, when one of them disappeared.
A multi-agency search party was launched including KPD, Kaua‘i Fire Department, USCG, and lifeguards. Helicopters and rescue boats were deployed.
At 6 a.m., a USCG helicopter discovered the body of the missing man 50 to 60 yards off shore.
A USCG cutter recovered the man and administered first aid and resuscitation efforts. He was transported to the USCG station at Nawiliwili where medics relieved the recovery crew.
He was transferred to the Wilcox Hospital emergency room, where, despite resuscitation efforts, he was pronounced deceased, according to KPD.
The area by Running Waters can be dangerous, Elhajj said.
“The swells were pretty good in there, at night its not really lit up at all,” he said. “It’s not a place that you want to be jumping in the water.”
