29-04-2025
Fisherman and his boat still missing weeks after vanishing on trip, HI cops say
A 42-year-old fisherman remains missing weeks after he set out on the water and didn't return home, police in Hawaii said.
Earl Kekuanaoa Hind was 'last known to have launched his vessel from the South Point area' of the island of Hawaii on April 7, the Hawaiʻi Police Department said in an April 29 news release.
Hind and his boat were spotted April 9 offshore 'near the Miloli'i area, heading in a northerly direction,' police said.
But, despite 'extensive search and rescue operations' by the Hawaiʻi Fire Department and United States Coast Guard, 'Hind and his vessel's current whereabouts are still unknown at this time,' police said.
Hind's boat is a 21-foot Force with a 2-foot extension, and it bears the name Makalapua Onalani, police said.
The Coast Guard said in an April 15 news release that its crews and partners logged more than 240 hours searching 200,000-plus square nautical miles looking for Hind. The Coast Guard suspended its search that day, per the release.
In a Maui Now op-ed published April 16, Hind's daughter, Makalapuaonalani Hind, urged officials not to give up. He's 'not only a seasoned seaman, he's a survivor. He knows the ocean like the back of his hand. He knows how to catch fish, collect water, and endure. He has the skill, knowledge, and resilience to survive for weeks, even months out at sea,' she said.
She added that, 'He is out there. He is strong. He is waiting for us.'
