Latest news with #OceanSafetyDepartment
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Yahoo
59-year-old Honolulu man drowns off Kailua Beach
HONOLULU (KHON2) — Multiple agencies responded to a drowning in the waters off Kailua Beach. Honolulu's new Ocean Safety Department plans to bring major upgrades to lifeguard services The incident happened around 10:15 a.m. on Tuesday, May 20, at 'Flag Poles,' the shoreline between Kalama Beach Park and Kailua Beach Park. According to Honolulu Ocean Safety, witnesses said they saw the man swimming in waist-deep waters when they noticed he was in trouble. Officials said Good Samaritans pulled the man out of the water and yelled for from a tower nearly half a mile away responded to the incident. A lieutenant also responded by vehicle. Upon arrival, lifeguards performed cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) until Honolulu Emergency Medical Services arrived and took over with treatment. Despite life-saving efforts, paramedics pronounced the man dead at the scene. Check out more news from around Hawaii Honolulu Police Department said there were no obvious signs of foul play. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
12-03-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Honolulu's new Ocean Safety Department plans to bring major upgrades to lifeguard services
HONOLULU (KHON2) — Big changes are coming to Oahu's beaches, which were unveiled at City Budget hearings on March 11. Honolulu's brand new Ocean Safety Department shared their plans for faster response times and better resources for lifeguards across the island. For the first time, Honolulu's lifeguards will be operating under their own department, separate from Emergency Services. Lifeguards train for evolving life-saving techniques With 227 miles of coastline and thousands of rescues a year, department leadership says the funding is critical. OSD presented a budget of $27.9 million dollars, much of it going towards personnel and equipment. Among the biggest investments – two new lifeguard substations in Kailua and Waianae. The Kailua facility is expected to be completed this summer. Kailua Neighborhood Board Chair, Bill Hicks, says the facility will make a difference.'We're pleased by the progress being made by this new department and and appreciate it because it is so critical to the safety and well being of Kailuans and visitors alike,' Hicks said. A new million dollar Waianae facility is expected to be built behind the Waianae fire station. 'Due to restrictions for coastal erosion set back and flood zones, we're going to have to build on the same property, but it's going to have to move further inland so it will be a brand new property,' said Kurt Lager, Department of Ocean Safety acting director. OSD also plans to purchase six new solar powered lifeguard towers, mostly to replace aging towers, but is also considering adding a tower on Oahu's North Shore. And the department plans to spend more than $288,000 to upgrade a dozen jet skis. 'Part of our reorg is to have a rescue unit, and similar to how fire rescue works, I would like to have some rescue jet ski units that would service the hours outside of our normal operating hours, which is 8 in the morning to 6:30pm. So we can truly cover dawn to dusk,' Lager said. The city council has until June 15th to approve a new budget for the next fiscal year. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
