Zipline worker falls to his death

A Hawaii island thrill-ride company has suspended its operations after one man died and another was critically injured Wednesday during a test run of one of its new above-the-trees suspension cables in Paukaa, north of Hilo.

"We’re going to do inspections on our entire course to make sure everything is safe," said Lava Hotline LLC owner Gary Marrow.

Marrow called it a "freak accident" that occurred on one of four ziplines in the process of completion while the builder, Experiential Resources Inc., was adjusting the tension of the cables.

Hawaii County police said a 36-year-old Maui man traveled about halfway along the 2,300-foot span between the two zipline towers when one of the wooden towers collapsed. He fell about 200 feet to his death, landing in a rocky riverbed, police said.

The other worker, an Ohio man, was getting ready to hook up while standing on the 30-foot tower when it collapsed, police said. He fell about 30 feet.

Todd Domeck of Experiential Resources said the Ohio man is 43 years old.

Fire units retrieved both men by helicopter.

The Ohio man was flown to Hilo Medical Center in critical condition with multiple internal injuries.

The incident happened about 9:39 a.m. in a forested area 3.8 miles up from Kulana Street near Honolii Stream. The area offers views of native rain forests and waterfalls as the harnessed participants ride down the line, propelled by gravity.

Police Capt. Randall Medeiros said the workers were tightening the cable, which had been in use for about a week, because operators were getting complaints that the line was too slow, which Marrow disputes, saying customers had not yet used the line.

Medeiros said it was the first such incident on the island that he is aware of.

Only four of Lava Hotline’s eight ziplines on the property had opened to the public earlier this year, Marrow said.

The company obtained all the necessary building permits for all eight towers, which were completed earlier this year, he said. The county Building Division made its final inspection on all the tower structures, but does not oversee the cables, he said.

Domeck said the line is made of wire rope.

Marrow said the towers are not new and "were permitted, inspected and finalized" by Hawaii County building officials.

The ziplines start and end on platform towers placed on land designated for agricultural use. The lines pass through property designated conservation.

Under state land use law, operations on agricultural property are under the purview of county planning departments. Any operations on conservation property are under the jurisdiction of the state Department of Land and Natural Resources’ Office of Conservation and Coastal Lands.

Hawaii County officials would not comment specifically about what types of permits the operation has obtained.

"We will conduct a careful, thorough review to determine all of the facts in this case," Mayor Billy Kenoi said in a statement. "We need to know exactly what happened and why, and we need to know exactly what went wrong. When we have completed that review and the facts are known, we will release our findings publicly."

DLNR officials, meanwhile, confirmed that the operation has been fined $16,500 for improperly installing a hiking trail, stairs and a walkway, all part of the tour operations, on the conservation lands including Honolii Stream and Ho­nolii Gulch. Marrow needed to obtain a conservation district use area permit for the improvements, the Board of Land and Natural Resources said in May in fining him.

The board also called for the company to either apply for an after-the-fact permit, or remove the improvements and restore the area to its natural state. DLNR spokeswoman Deborah Ward said the company declined to obtain a permit, and instead chose to submit a remediation plan that included removing handrails, stabilizing the stream bank and other improvements. The fine has been paid in full, Ward said.

The company was to notify DLNR when the remediation plan was completed, she said.

Domeck flew from Maui, where the local Experiential office is based, to Hawaii island to find out exactly what happened, and was at the surviving man’s bedside Wednesday night.

Domeck would not comment further on the accident.

Randall Medeiros, the police captain, said that police were concerned for the welfare of the zipline company’s customers.

"We do not have the authority to shut down the business," Medeiros said. "For safety’s sake, we’re checking with another county agency to determine what can be done to assure the safety of the patrons of this company."

He said, "We are not aware of the agency that regulates ziplines."

Marrow said Experiential is an "amazing builder" that builds all over the world. He estimates the inspections should take about two weeks.

"We lost one of our really cool guys," Marrow said. "We all empathize with the families, and we’re just trying to get through this."

Marrow is also half owner of KapohoKine Adventures, which takes reservations for the zipline and other tours.

The Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs shows no complaints for Lava Hotline, KapohoKine Adventures and Experiential Resources Inc., an Indiana corporation.