The chairman of the state House committee that oversees ocean resources said he will explore possible legislation to control the kind of unsafe activities that sent people to hospitals with alcohol intoxication during a Fourth of July “floatilla” off Waikiki.
State Rep. Kaniela Ing, chairman of the House Committee on Ocean, Marine Resources and Hawaiian Affairs, said Tuesday’s “floatilla” was “alarming.”
Ing said: “This has crossed way over the line. … We are talking about underage drinking, trash on our beaches and in our waters, 10 people being rushed to the hospital, and one 19-year-old woman in critical condition” from alcohol.
State ocean recreation officials also are looking at rules used for “floatillas” in San Diego and are considering bringing draft rules before the Board of Land and Natural Resources, according to a state land spokesman.
During a news conference in Waikiki Wednesday, Honolulu Ocean Safety official
Lt. Tom Allen said offshore winds blowing between
15 to 25 mph made it difficult for people using flotation devices to return to shore.
An estimated 10,000 people were part of the “floatilla,” which included people in various types of watercraft — including motorized boats, kayaks, canoes, dinghies and inflatable floats, according to the Coast Guard.
Hundreds of people floating on various devices as far as a mile offshore had to be rescued, according to the city’s ocean safety office.
“From about 2:30 p.m. on it was continuous, just hundreds of people being transported back to shore … primarily by jet skis,” Allen said. “It’s easy to get out but coming back in, you get caught in the wind. It’s not a bunch of athletes out there. It’s a bunch of lay people having a good time and when they get caught in the wind, they get tired fast.”
The Coast Guard said it recovered more than 100 abandoned inflatable floats that were found adrift in the ocean.
Coast Guard officials said they and city and state ocean safety and enforcement officials rescued more than 30 people from the water, including many intoxicated, underage youths.
Coast Guard official Lt. j.g. Brian Waters said operating a boat while under the influence of alcohol or drugs is illegal and penalties can result in fines, jail time and suspension or revocation of boating privileges.
Honolulu Police Lt. Eric Yosemori said no one was cited for underage drinking. Making a police case for underage drinking can be problematic, he said.
“It’s difficult for us,” Yosemori said. “We need to observe the violation. In this case … the juveniles were already intoxicated.”
He said police are in charge of enforcing laws on land while other agencies are in charge of enforcement on the water.
Ing said he believes that legal loopholes might make enforcement by city and state officials impossible, and it is up to the Legislature to amend the law.
Ing, (D, Kihei-Wailea- Makena), said he plans to introduce an unspecified bill before the House Committee on Ocean, Marine Resources and Hawaiian Affairs that he chairs.
